Deal not done to sell and move Thrashers
While negotiations between the Atlanta Spirit and True North Sports and Entertainment continue, no deal has been reached to sell the Thrashers and relocate the team to Winnipeg.
Despite a published report Thursday night saying a deal was done and would be announced Tuesday, officials with the Thrashers, True North and the NHL said no such agreement has been reached.
Several Thrashers officials told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Thursday that the report was unfounded. The Winnipeg Free Press reported that a high-ranking True North official denied the report.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, speaking earlier in the day on NHL Live, said no deal has been made to move the Thrashers to Winnipeg– and criticized reports of a possible move. However, he did not rule out relocation unless someone steps forward to own the team here.
“We get reports, speculation, that the team’s gone. And there’s no deal,” Bettman said. “I can tell you that with certainty that there is no deal for this team to move. Am I predicting that there will never be or that there won’t be at some point in time? No, I’m not saying there is or there isn’t.”
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly also issued a denial. “The Board has not been asked to consider nor approve any transaction involving the sale and/or possible relocation of the Atlanta Thrashers’ franchise. Any suggestion to the contrary is entirely untrue.”
The Thrashers and True North have been in active negotiations, as reported by the AJC. The team is also searching for a buyer willing to keep the team in Atlanta. However with time running out to find local ownership, a deal with True North could be reached in the near future. A move to relocate the franchise would have to be made soon in order to begin play next season.
Bettman said the NHL always wants to keep a team in its current market but must have an owner to operate it there.
“The decision as to whether or not to move a club doesn’t come out of looking at two markets and saying, ‘This market would be better than that market,’” he said. “We try to keep our clubs where they are. And if it is ultimately determined that a club has to move, generally the reason . . . is because nobody wants to own a team there anymore, nobody wants to fund the losses and [the current owner] can’t find a buyer.”
The Thrashers’ ownership group has said that it faces a “sense of urgency” to shed the team’s operating losses and that if a buyer can’t be found to keep the team in Atlanta, relocation is a possibility.
The first two callers to Bettman’s show, broadcast on satellite radio and the Internet, were Thrashers fans. The first said Atlanta will support a hockey team if ownership meets the fans halfway by putting a competitive product on the ice.
“I understand and respect that,” Bettman said, “but the key to this may be, in the final analysis, whether or not somebody wants to own the team in Atlanta. In the absence of either the current ownership group continuing to own and operate or somebody stepping forward who wants to buy the club, that becomes the situation that concerns us or any sports league.
“We’ll only leave a market - in this case Atlanta, picking up on the caller’s statements – if we have to. And hopefully the current ownership group will figure a way out of this that makes sense for everybody,” he said.
The caller told Bettman that the Thrashers drew strong crowds in their first five seasons and that a fan rally will be held Saturday to show support for the team.
Noting that the Thrashers have ranked near the bottom of the league in attendance the past two seasons, Bettman said: “I understand that there may be dissatisfaction there, but demonstrating your dissatisfaction by not going to games is an interesting strategy. It’s your absolute right. But if it becomes a turnoff for anybody who might want to buy the franchise, the long-term consequences could be severe.
“It will be interesting to see how many people show up at the rally on Saturday,” Bettman said.
He declined to put a deadline on a decision about whether the team will be moved.
“Obviously, as it relates to next season, time is getting short,” he said. “We have to do a schedule. We’re doing a schedule with our broadcast partners; we have to have it done for clubs by the end of June. And it’s not something you can do in 28 or 48 hours.”
- Staff writer Tim Tucker contributed to this report.
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381 comments Add your comment
Steve
May 19th, 2011
10:11 pm
Come home to mama Jets
EA
May 19th, 2011
10:15 pm
Bettman called out the boycotters tonight saying that “was an interesting strategy”. He went on to say that sends a very negative sign to a prospective buyer.
OHL
May 19th, 2011
10:15 pm
Bettman said: “I understand that there may be dissatisfaction there, but demonstrating your dissatisfaction by not going to games is an interesting strategy. It’s your absolute right. But if it becomes a turnoff for anybody who might want to buy the franchise, the long-term consequences could be severe.”
I don’t get it, you guys were not going to games on purpose?
sisu
May 19th, 2011
10:17 pm
i guess the odd part is that IF the Thrashers are sold they will not be called Jets and perhaps another 10 year losing streak without playoffs continues…
sisu
May 19th, 2011
10:19 pm
that is correct OHL, that was the stance by some….we hope you get at least Don Waddell and ASG there just for 10 years to understand. Do some research on ASG and see what comes up, mostly law suits and idiotic behavior.
EA
May 19th, 2011
10:20 pm
Bettman also encouraged fans to go to the rally. Whatever that means.
Les Habitants
May 19th, 2011
10:21 pm
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/atlanta-thrashers-moving-to-winnipeg/article2029179/
What a good day for Canadian professional sports.
BobbyG
May 19th, 2011
10:21 pm
so confusing…..what is real anymore?
HedbergHawerchukSelanne
May 19th, 2011
10:22 pm
Finally appears the chatter is over! Next to Mr Duff, Mr Chipman is the greatest man in the history of Manitoba! Sorry Atlanta, but deep down you know the team belongs in Winnipeg. While we sympathize, we have waited an eternity for past wrongs to be corrected. And after much patience, it seems we are on the cusp of a monumental day on Tuesday! Thank you so much Mr Chipman!!!!
ATLANTA
May 19th, 2011
10:22 pm
WE DON’T LIKE YOU, CHRIS!
Joe Friday
May 19th, 2011
10:23 pm
Dude, the deals done. The reporter works for Thomson’s paper, Thomson is TSNE. It’s done. Bettman already starting with the blame game. The story line is that they’ve been trying to sell the team for years and no one bought, which is bs, no one could buy until the Belkin lawsuit was just recently settled. And now they’re going to blame the fans for not subsidizing this incompetent ownership.
OHL, at a fan meeting a couple years ago, the fans were complaining to one of the owners, Levenson, about how poorly they were running the club, and he called one fan a “smart ass” and told everyone to “deal with it” if they didn’t like it.
The NHL is a Mickey Mouse league and deserves it’s ultimate demise, which will come.
done and done
May 19th, 2011
10:24 pm
I guess Boston, Chicago, NY Islanders, and Washington fans were “interesting” when they spoke with their wallets and refused to show up for crap product on ice. Bettman, you have shown your true colors… and you are as criminal as Boots Baggio, the guy you endorsed, and as criminal as ASG group that gained ownership illegally over David McDavid, and as criminal as the NHL owners were when Tom Cousins refused to dip into the players’ pension plan to cover owner losses.
Here’s hoping the players walk out in 2012 and hockey dies on the vine.
By the way, I just called Directv and cancelled the NHL package for next year. I’m done with your criminal sport.
Tom M
May 19th, 2011
10:26 pm
Hope it’s true but not counting on it, bettman still has to agree.
2mins
May 19th, 2011
10:26 pm
The catch-22 in some markets is “do we support the team no matter what?”. If you support the team and it never wins you feel bad, but if you don’t support the team it might leave.
This though is not the case in Atlanta. With ASG in charge it has made no difference whether the fans supported the team or not…. Long term they were screwed. The owners have never wanted the team.
EA
May 19th, 2011
10:27 pm
Correction–Bettman said it will be interesting to see how many fans show up at the rally on Saturday.
done and done
May 19th, 2011
10:28 pm
Bettman said he would be interested to see how many fans show up Saturday. Sorry boss, your little press release was planned to rain on the Thrasher parade and you will certainly send your media stooges to whoop it up when 5 people who didn’t get the message about the criminality of this whole mess show up.
You can’t wait to spin this. I bet you told Dany Heatley to put his Ferarri through the paces.
EA
May 19th, 2011
10:28 pm
Winnipeg–go find your own message boards. You all are pathetic. Remember what happened in Phoenix. Two days away from the deal and you had egg on your face.
ATLANTA
May 19th, 2011
10:28 pm
I would say “go thrashers” but that’s the opposite of what I want to happen sooo….
STAY THRASHERSSS!!!!
sisu
May 19th, 2011
10:29 pm
I guess some canucks think that any NHL team will do for them, to sya rightfully theirs is silly. Perhaps the Yotes but they will be in Quebec next season. All this comes down to 60 million transfer fee nothing else.
B. Thenet
May 19th, 2011
10:29 pm
Gary Bettman wants his $60 million.
This moron has run the league for over 20 years, and he wants to pretend that fans not showing up for a crap product is some kind of Atlanta invention.
Thrasher fan
May 19th, 2011
10:30 pm
Hawks have 7th highest payroll in league. Thrashers bottom of the league every year. ASG always wanted to run off fans and dump franchise. Renegotiated arena deal to allow thrashers to be sold and relocated.
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
10:31 pm
Cats out of the bag.
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
10:31 pm
You need to call Don Waddell and he’ll give you the straight answer.
done and done
May 19th, 2011
10:32 pm
I’m done with anything Philips or Hawks too. A new owner is nothing more than an extension of the A$$ goons if he insisted that the goons get rid of ATLANTA’s team as a condition of purchase.
Pittsburgh had sh^ty attendance too until criminal Bettman managed to get them Crosby and Malkin. WOW. 60 million ….. may you choke on the first $1
done and done
May 19th, 2011
10:36 pm
at least our tax dollars aren’t being used to buy off Gary Bettman. Manitoba, I hear TNSE just asked for their share of the tax teat. Guess the Winnipigs turned out to be no better than the Glendale bunch they were trashing for the same thing.
Steve-o
May 19th, 2011
10:41 pm
Bettman: “I can tell you that with certainty that there is no deal for this team to move.”
————————————
If it turns out that Bettman makes the announcement official in Winnipeg on Tuesday, it will prove that he is a liar of criminal proportions.
EA
May 19th, 2011
10:41 pm
Do you want to know how excited the Thrashers players would be to move to Winnipeg? First to chime in–Anthony Stewart-tweeting “the fat lady has not sung yet, my friend”.
Dudley Do-right
May 19th, 2011
10:41 pm
Canadians have limp wrists.
CANCEL the Cookout/Tailgate - Don't Help NHL
May 19th, 2011
10:42 pm
Based on the news the team is leaving, I suggest you cancel the cookout.
Reschedule it for AFTER the official announcement next week. Do not let them use
your event as “cover” to sell the team. PLEASE do not give them the ammo they want. Bettman’s comments prove he wants to use it as “see, nobody cares in Atlanta”.
I would say that “due to the lack of transparency from the NHL on this pending sale, you have decided to reschedule the event until they show some respect for the fans in Atlanta”. Turn it to OUR advantage and put the bad PR back on them…
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/atlanta-thrashers-moving-to-winnipeg/article2029179/
BCWFLASH
May 19th, 2011
10:43 pm
The National a coast to coast news show which is the Nation’s #1 news show is saying they have a report that the deal to move the Trashers is now finalized but that an official announcement will not take place until tuesday May 24,2011.
G52PIM228
May 19th, 2011
10:44 pm
TNSE finally commented, they said no deal is “done”..
CANCEL the Cookout/Tailgate - Don't Help NHL
May 19th, 2011
10:44 pm
Bettman wants to use SAT EVENT
“It will be interesting to see how many people show up at the rally on Saturday,” Bettman said.
CANCEL IT – Let it be our PR weapon, not theirs. Reschedule it for AFTER the NHL’s official announcement to move the team. Say “we are rescheduling due to the lack of communication from the NHL. We want some transparency in this process.”
RS
May 19th, 2011
10:45 pm
It would be funny if this little stunt messes up the whole deal.
G52PIM228
May 19th, 2011
10:46 pm
How did you losers in Atlanta allow your team go to Loserpeg? TNSE says they are denying but the deal is done. They are doing that because David Thomson owns the Globe and Mail. It would look bad that his paper broke the news.
Big Wally
May 19th, 2011
10:46 pm
Has anyone been honest in this fiasco? ASG = long time liars, Bettman = lying about deal, Waddell = trying to keep team in Atlanta, JB Smith = on buying the team.
Winnipeg City Zoo is now closed
May 19th, 2011
10:47 pm
The squirrel has left the exhibit. Nothing left to see.
Yung JB from Montreal
May 19th, 2011
10:47 pm
I’m canadian, but in no way i want the team here!
I am an ATLANTA Thrashers fan. not a WINNIPEG SH*TF*CKS fan
Please someone do something so they can stay in the A. Please god
BCWFLASH
May 19th, 2011
10:47 pm
Sorry,i meant to type Thrashers in my last post, i really meant no offense by missing the H in their name(Typo), also i meant to say The National is Canada’s #1 News show….I should always reread my post before i hit submit.
OHL
May 19th, 2011
10:47 pm
I think this was a bad omen for you guys – http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/amateur/canadas-mightiest-midgets-120588684.html
PoweRForgeD
May 19th, 2011
10:47 pm
lol @ people thinking our government has anything to do with this. I understand though, you’re upset you’re losing your team
Don’t hate on Winnipeg, hate on bettman and the ASG. We are just taking advantage of their failures
PoweRForgeD
May 19th, 2011
10:49 pm
Good luck with your failing economy, crime and poverty!!!
Atlanta sports fan
May 19th, 2011
10:49 pm
I’ll be sad if the Thrashers go.
I will be comforted knowing that I won’t be living in Winnipeg. Good luck attracting free agents and retaining players in your arctic backwater.
PoweRForgeD
May 19th, 2011
10:52 pm
My last comment was aimed at atlanta sports fan
Winnipeg Petting Zoo is now closed
May 19th, 2011
10:52 pm
The Moose’s rear end is sore and runs away from the men customers.
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
10:53 pm
DEAL or No DEAL
Najeh Davenpoop
May 19th, 2011
10:53 pm
So basically in the mind of the NHL commissioner fans should support a sh-tty product regardless of how sh-tty it is. I wonder if he applies this line of thinking to other aspects of his life, by eating at the worst restaurants in town or buying the cars with the lowest consumer reports ratings.
I’m not a hockey fan, but I feel bad for y’all Thrashers fans. Across ATL sports, we deserve better. And as a Hawks fan I’m still stuck with the DASG.
2mins
May 19th, 2011
10:54 pm
The bottom line is money talks .
Keep Hockey in Atlanta
May 19th, 2011
10:54 pm
Good job Globe and Mail you’ve ratcheted up the tension between those in Atlanta and Winnipeg. Is the Globe and Mail even credible or are they more like tabloids?
Joe Friday
May 19th, 2011
10:54 pm
http://www.sportsradio1290.com/
the reporter is on the air right now, confirming the story
2mins
May 19th, 2011
10:55 pm
Sorry Atlanta Sports fan…. But Winnipeg never had problems getting players before. It’s not like the players were killing themselves to play in Atlanta either.
Bluestreak
May 19th, 2011
10:55 pm
HedbergHawerchukSelanne -
I want you to explain two things hoser:
1) How do the Thrashers ‘belong’ to Winnipeg? They were an expansion team granted to Atlanta. The team you speak of is currently in Phoenix. Go back and get them so you can legally call them the Jets. This team (until someone says otherwise, and not you…someone with pull) belongs to Atlanta and has since its inception.
2) And this is really more of a point based on your elevated line of thinking, if you feel that teams which have moved belong to their old cities (again, assuming you ‘forgot’ that Phoenix was actually the Jets of old), then please tell your fellow countrymen in Calgary to kindly send the Flames back to Atlanta. We’ll gladly welcome them back to where THEY belong. I don’t recall in history that Calgary was burned to the ground. Name doesn’t make sense for the city. We’ll just relocate everyone back to their original cities and all will be happy.
Just because you sing ‘Oh, Canada’ and have a Maple Leaf on your national flag does not mean that a hockey team belongs to you. I’m so sick of the Canadian snobbery thinking that hockey only belongs in Canada.
You know, you guys take all the hockey teams and we’ll take the BlueJays and football back (American sports) and we’ll see which league(s) are here in 20 years. Guarantee it won’t be the NHL.
OHL
May 19th, 2011
10:55 pm
Atlanta sports fan, Ottawa, Calgary & Edmonton have all been to the Stanley Cup Finals since you came into the league. Vancouver is on the verge of going there this year. What makes you think that Winnipeg is so bad for hockey players?
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
10:56 pm
Yes money talks. Franchise goes to the highest bidder. ASG has to cover their losses. It is as simple as that.
2mins
May 19th, 2011
10:56 pm
The Globe and Mail is a national news paper, not a tabloid.
Steve-o
May 19th, 2011
10:58 pm
Joe Friday,
Thanks for the link to the radio interview with the reporter who broke the story. Yup, this is going to happen. Canadian reporters tend to be very careful and thorough. It’s done.
Boy, the announcers and reporter sound positively giddy. I would bet my house that this deal is done.
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
11:00 pm
As new owners: the first thing I would do is change every person in the organization including the players.
Atlanta sports fan
May 19th, 2011
11:01 pm
It must be sad to live in Winnepeg. It’s one thing to live in Canada. It’s another to live in the crappy part of Canada.
@2mins… I highly doubt you’ll woo big time free agents out from under actually nice cities. I’ve been to Winnepeg, not the place if I was an athlete making millions of dollars a year.
HillMan
May 19th, 2011
11:04 pm
For all us Thrashers fans in the ATL this is good news. If you follow this team you know the McDavid deal was done, and then we got the ASG and a bunch of lawsuits. Since this group is so good at lawsuits, my guess is the gave TNSE a hand shake and now they will back out.
Joe Friday
May 19th, 2011
11:05 pm
“Thanks for the link to the radio interview with the reporter who broke the story. Yup, this is going to happen. Canadian reporters tend to be very careful and thorough. It’s done.”
That was live by the way, as of 10 minutes ago the reporter, in the face of Bob McKenzie and all the other Canadian reporters (who are dying that they didn’t break the biggest story in Canadian hockey in decades), and the reporter confirmed it even in the face of the denials. It’s done boys and girls.
It’s time to focus our attention now on the Spirit Squad and on the NHL front office. What a joke of a league the NHL is . . . absolute Mickey Mouse organization
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
11:07 pm
NO DEAL per 11 Alive. This has more authority than some Canadian tabloid or reckless “reporter” who has about as much credibility as Kinkaide.
Steve-o
May 19th, 2011
11:07 pm
What a joke of a league the NHL is . . . absolute Mickey Mouse organization
——————————————
So true, and Bettman is the biggest joke of all.
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
11:08 pm
11 Alive is busting up a lap top right now…now that is news folks.
EA
May 19th, 2011
11:08 pm
2 min–I don’t like to participate in Winnipeg bashing. HOWEVER, we lost Kovalchuk for a couple of reasons. One we didn’t have a team that could win consistently Two-he said he did not want to wake up in a year and find out he was moving to Winnipeg.
Matt the Brave
May 19th, 2011
11:09 pm
So, it has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that it costs nearly $100 for a family of four to go to a game, not to mention that it’s in downtown Atlanta (i.e. away from the fanbase and most of the population in Atlanta in general). Sure, we planned to stay away on purpose.
And not even to mention that for the last three years it’s been nigh impossible to actually catch the Thrashers on TV and nearly impossible unless you are next to the tower to listen to them on the radio. Nearly zero dollars are being put into promoting the team, so what do you expect?
In reality, yes, the Thrashers moving from Atlanta would hurt the city in the long run, but I would bet the average fan here wouldn’t miss them. And that’s just sad. I guess that we’ll have a top-tier hockey team other than the Gladiators in about two years playing at Philips and they’ll do great (Knights ring any bells?)
Les Habitants
May 19th, 2011
11:09 pm
Why all the hatred towards Canada and Canadians?
Facts are:
1. Canadian economy is currently in a much better shape than American.
2. Canadian NHL fanbase is better and bigger than that of U.S. South.
3. Canadian teams have more lucrative TV contracts than Southern teams.
4. The Atlanta Thrashers are currently bleeding, and have been for a while.
5. The Atlanta Thrashers are the second least valuable team in the NHL.
6. Somebody wants to buy the team and move is to a potentially more profitable place.
Let us just face it. Having the team in Atlanta (and Florida and Phoenix) makes no clear business sense.
StevenBrunt
May 19th, 2011
11:10 pm
the Globe & Mail is owned by the money guy in TNSE
Steve-o
May 19th, 2011
11:10 pm
NO DEAL per 11 Alive.
———————————————————-
Dude, 11 Alive does not exactly have a lot of NHL or True North sources. This report is in Canada’s leading newspaper, which would not go with the story unless they had very good information.
Sherry Taylor
May 19th, 2011
11:12 pm
I think I may NEVER go to another concert at Philips Arena nor will I ever go to a Hawks game. Two people won’t make a difference to the ASG, but it will make a difference in my hockey loving heart.
angryATLfan
May 19th, 2011
11:13 pm
i’m not really angry that they are leaving… go jets go! Deal done.
OHL
May 19th, 2011
11:14 pm
Atlanta sports fan, you highly doubt Winnipeg will woo big time free agents out from under actually nice cities. Does that mean Winnipeg won’t be able to hold onto free agents like Kovalchuk, Savard and Hossa?
HillMan
May 19th, 2011
11:14 pm
Sherry right there with you. Make that 6 folks. I have been a season ticketholder since day one and while I hated going down town from the burbs, since I did it for the Thrash, I also did it for concerts. No more!!
Kevin
May 19th, 2011
11:14 pm
I realize this city wants to hang onto this team, but sorry Barry Melrose is now reporting this is a DONE DEAL and will be announced OFFICIALLY IN WINNIPEG on Tuesday!!! Now it’s coming from numerous sources, so deal with it, it’s all over’! Let the CRYING begin!!! I hear there’s a badminton team looking to relocate and coolers are allowed just like at NASCAR, surely this is more up your alley, and it’s a lot slower game so you all can keep up!
Meanwhile for those of you who watch real hockey teams, or have forgotten more about the game than half these dolts will ever know, the Bruins are now up 2 games to 1 over Tampa Bay!
Tommy Glavine
May 19th, 2011
11:15 pm
Barry Melrose is the final authority of all things hockey.
Steve-o
May 19th, 2011
11:16 pm
Hey Kevin,
You’re a jerk. It’s not cool to troll a comments forum and gloat and generally be an a-hole when there are people who are real fans and care about the team moving.
Not a Hockey Fan
May 19th, 2011
11:16 pm
Speaking of deals, maybe the Real Deal himself, none other than Georgia Governor, Nathan Deal, can make a deal to personally buy the Thrashers. Terms– no cash upfront; unsecured promissory note only; price irrelevant since the note will be worthless anyhow because of Deal’s past savvy deals. Is it a deal?
Kevin
May 19th, 2011
11:18 pm
Oh yeah, 11 Alive News, now there’s a reliable source. This week they just stopped talking about the snow that hit here in January. Give me a break.
I think ESPN and Canadian news sources are a bit more on top of this than 11 Asleep News.
2mins
May 19th, 2011
11:18 pm
I’ve said this before . This is not phx that should be moving. Atlanta is moving for one reason only and it’s the same reason Winnipeg moved … Nobody wants to own the team in that city. That’s it.
Atlanta Football
May 19th, 2011
11:18 pm
“Select -a-seat,, tickets starting at $23 for lower level” And you epect someone to buy this team? How many people attending this “get together” have checks made out for $3000 for a season ticket. Not $900. If people aren’t willing to pay then they can’t complain when it leaves.
EA
May 19th, 2011
11:18 pm
OHL, you won’t hold onto any free agent like those you named unless there is a winning hockey teamn and big money to support those players contracts.
Kevin
May 19th, 2011
11:20 pm
Tommy Glavine is right, no one else knows anything but those real news stations here in Atlanta that have experts like Nene Leakes on their broadcasts. What an idiot.
Joe Friday
May 19th, 2011
11:23 pm
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Thrashers-sale-report-not-accurate-122268064.html
Sounds like the Tues. press conference will be to announced that TSNE is going to start ticket sales and if they get 10000 or more, then the NHL will sign off on it.
If tickets go on sale there at 9am Tuesday, I expect them to hit the 10k number by noon on Weds.
Jed
May 19th, 2011
11:25 pm
Good riddance to the thrashed! Now the fans (all 2 of them) of this dumba$$ sport can move on. Atlanta is Losersville — again. A total flop in the NBA, NHL and NFL. And, a grand total of ONE baseball championship. Pityfull. Jess pityfull.
toddism
May 19th, 2011
11:27 pm
canada’s greatest accomplishment is keeping the french as pets and teaching them to play hockey.
Bluestreak
May 19th, 2011
11:28 pm
Frenchy (Les Habitants),
Why wouldn’t we be mad at a bunch of folks from the city/province/country that is taking our team from us and coming on our turf (this is the AJC, not the Globe) and flaunting in our face? If Atlanta (or Orlando, Birmingham, Vicksburg, New Orleans…get my point?) came in and bought the Oilers, Leafs, Canucks (Birmingham Canunks makes as much since as Calgary Flames) or Les Canadiens and moved them south and we were on your sites flaunting it, wouldn’t you be spitting venom at us? Wounded animals tend to lash out. Same thing for wounded fans.
Go celebrate somewhere else.
foncused
May 19th, 2011
11:31 pm
What is really sad is the general lack of decorum on these blogs. Emotions run high but there is no reason to attack other people or other cities. I am an Atlanta Thrasher fan. I wish that the league would truly look at win-win scenarios vs. pitting cities and fans against each other.
The evidence is clear, teams with consistent bad production (i.e. non winners) have low fan support. It happens in almost every sport . . . most fans get tired of shelling out hard earned money for a consitently inferior product. We all want to be associated with a winner, something that we can be proud of. That is just human nature. It is also human nature to respond when you or your city/team is being attacked.
The real losers in the scenario are the fans, no matter which city “wins”. Assuming that the reports are correct and that True North and ASG have reached a deal and the team moves, the people that should be on the receiving end of our ire are: ASG, Don Waddell, Gary Bettman, and the NHL Board of Governors. Unfortunately, they don’t or won’t care and have their money.
To the Canadian fans, thank you for your passion, but please don’t judge Atlanta or our fans based upon the poor ownership and management that we have suffered through over the last 10 seasons.
To my fellow Thrasher fans, please stop taking your frustrations out on fellow hockey fans. The fate of our team is not their fault and we should not hold them accountable for what appears ultimately the demise of our team.
Wienerpeg Trolls
May 19th, 2011
11:31 pm
I’ll bet Ladd is glad he never signed his deal. Who would want to move to Wienerpeg?
EA
May 19th, 2011
11:31 pm
Joe Friday–season tickets don’t come cheap. Believe me, I know. If they get 10,000 by noon, that would be quite an accomplishment. I have no idea about the economics of Winnipeg. Guess who has a chance to buy season tickets first? Atlanta fans on Saturday. Just sayin.
Bluestreak
May 19th, 2011
11:32 pm
Jed, your spelling is ‘pitiful’. If you’re going to bring that junk, at least use a spellchecker.
Big Wally
May 19th, 2011
11:35 pm
Thanks for the economics lesson Les habitants, now go back to swapping spit with your poodle.
Michael Gearon
May 19th, 2011
11:36 pm
I like Canadian dollars just as much as American dollars.
Les Habitants
May 19th, 2011
11:38 pm
Bluestreak,
Your example is completely unrealistic and make no sense. Do you have a business model that supports a profitable New Orleans Maple Leafs? With the exception of the Ottawa Senators, Canadian teams are making profits. In fact, just Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver make enough profits to cover the NHL.
BTW, calling a francophone Canadian Frenchy is almost as offensive as calling a person with dark complexion n*gg*r.
Les Habitants
May 19th, 2011
11:39 pm
Big Wally,
Is there anything that I wrote not true?
thrasherdawg
May 19th, 2011
11:42 pm
Ted Turner should be forced to buy the team back until he can find a buyer.
He is responsible for the being of the end.
The NHL / Bettman approved this back in 2003 now they don’t want to take responsibility…what a frick”n joke.
No one takes responsibility anymore. When will people learn, money isn’t everything.
Get Lost
May 19th, 2011
11:43 pm
Canadien Frenchy Les Habitants–take your facts and get lost.
Really?
May 19th, 2011
11:44 pm
WTF? The ATL loses a team to the canadian rednecks of Winnipeg? Wow, what about Kansas City, Milwaukee, Cleveland, or Hartford??? Winnipeg, there is a reason why the NHL falls further behind the big boy sports.
Sage of Bluesland
May 19th, 2011
11:45 pm
I wish this team nothing but the best in Winnipeg. I’m positive that a little care and love will transform them into what they should have been here. Their gain; our loss.
I also believe firmly that they will not suffer incompetence such as Don Waddell in that environment very long at all. Compare that to the many here who made excuse after excuse for the obvious.
Uncaring ownership; incompetent management; fans who refused to enforce accountability.
Good job, Sheep….How foolish you must feel?
(I’m thankful I stopped subsidizing the incompetence many, many years ago….This has been a fraud from day-one….Oh well, the sun will rise tomorrow–and this little charade around here will end….It’s just a shame we can’t get one more Sara-spweadsheet-special before we sign off?)
thrasherdawg
May 19th, 2011
11:45 pm
The players love it here and do not want to leave…wish they could strick as a team.
It’s to bad all the players don’t have a “no trade clause” then they could refuse to be traded to Winnipeg.
I’m sure fans in Winnipeg are less forgiving than Atlanta fans. Let their new team miss the play-offs year after year and then we’ll see how many people sow up for their games.
Big Wally
May 19th, 2011
11:46 pm
Economics change, hence the reason why Canada lost two teams awhile back. US economy won’t be in the stinker forever.
StevenBrunt
May 19th, 2011
11:48 pm
Saskatoon is looking for a team… just in case ATL ever gets another NHL team.
ATL seems to be the best way to smuggle NHL teams into Canada
Thanks !!
EA
May 19th, 2011
11:50 pm
THE GLOBE AND MAIL is now saying that the deal is NOT done. Bettman said he will be watching with interest to see the turn out at the fan rally this Saturday.
Les Habitants
May 19th, 2011
11:51 pm
Big Wally,
I agree with you. Canadian economy was bad, that was why the Jets and Nordiques left. They were good business decisions at that time. Now, things turn arond. Thrashers’ move to Winnipeg makes as much sense as Jets’ and Nordiques’ moves did.
Enos
May 19th, 2011
11:51 pm
Yep, just like you lost your first team to the Canadian rednecks of Calgary! Kansas City – FAILED; Milwaukee???; Cleveland – FAILED; Hartford – FAILED. Atlanta – worst sports city in North America.
thrasherdawg
May 19th, 2011
11:51 pm
The NHL allows the ASG to sell the Thrashers while having clear title to the team for only 5 months.
Most people can’t sell their house in 5 months.
Bettman is a Joke.
Kevin
May 19th, 2011
11:52 pm
@Steve-O wow, now that’s a really good come-back. You come up with that all by yourself or did your dad help you type it?
EA
May 19th, 2011
11:59 pm
Sage, Bettman seems to think fans with your way of thinking have done nothing but discourage a new owner. As stated earlier, he calls the boycott strategy interesting with possible severe long term effects. You have been saying for a long time that if no one showed, he would step in. Since he is aware that the boycotters have been not going to games for two years, he did take notice. Unfortunately, he did not do anything about it other than to most likely move the team.. I guess he thinks Atlanta fans should support a lousy team while waiting for a new buyer.
Old Time
May 19th, 2011
11:59 pm
I just have one question, Bettman says a team needs an owner, but Phoenix hasn’t had one for two years, so how does that work again?
Kevin
May 19th, 2011
11:59 pm
Thrasherdawg..now there’s a knowledgable hockey fan.
“I wish the players all could have no trade clauses so they don’t get traded to Winnipeg:. Umm…you do realize this is a sale and not a trade. Just like if I bought your trailer, I could choose to keep renting it to you or I could send you packing. The players will go to Winnipeg then the new management, which won’t include any off the tools currently in the front office will decide who they trade, who they send down who they keep.
its me
May 20th, 2011
12:00 am
Actually if and only if we get a NHL team the thrashers were NOT THE jets let it go the coyotes WERE the jets not the thrashers. So with that being said IF we get a team here in Winnipeg but it won’t be the jets get over it… Sorry for your loss Atlanta if you lose your team.
Joe Friday
May 20th, 2011
12:00 am
RealKyper Nick Kypreos
Confirming Brunt story #Winnipeg deal done. Told Thomson/Chipman in full partnership. Hear re-location fee alone for #NHL between 50-60M.
wpgJetsfan
May 20th, 2011
12:02 am
http://media.winnipegfreepress.com/audio/HnL-May19-Stephen-Brunt.mp3
2mins
May 20th, 2011
12:02 am
Reported relocation fee was $50M – $60M paid by TNSE
Keep Hockey in Atlanta
May 20th, 2011
12:05 am
This truly is depressing.
Joe Friday
May 20th, 2011
12:06 am
Atlanta fans, grab the real story here. We know the Spirit Squad blows. We know Waddell was incompetent. But now we know something new. The NHL approved this months ago and threw Atlanta under the bus after they fought for Pittsburgh, Nashville, Tampa, Phoenix. Bettman and the NHL lied to us, this deal was done months ago, that’s a fact. All they’ve been doing is negotiating the contract, which takes months in and of itself, especially when dealing with jokers like Levenson and Co.
So, now knowing what the NHL did here, are you ever going to support this Mickey Mouse league again? That answer is pretty clear to me, fool me once, shame on you . . .
EA
May 20th, 2011
12:09 am
Go to the Globe and Mail–Headline–Deal Not Done Yet.
Jay
May 20th, 2011
12:09 am
EA=DENIAL!
Sage of Bluesland
May 20th, 2011
12:10 am
Nope, EA, don’t be like that buffoon Kincade and start blaming the fans (like myself). No.
The problem with this organization started at the top–and trickled down into management.
I’m actually thankful that I caused even a small portion of more of their LOSSES (through at least my dollars held back).
Don’t even go there. You know the truth, deep-down. Place the blame for this debacle where is squarely belongs.
Uncaring ownership–incompetent management. That’s it; end-of.
BCWFLASH
May 20th, 2011
12:11 am
Atlanta lost around 20 million this year but Phoenix lost around 36 million and had a round of Playoff hockey to help as well. If Atlanta could get a great ownership group together then they could buy and move from a higher loss city to another ready to go arena and city. This would be Atlanta’s best chance to get back on the horse and win. I don’t think it will happen but is a possability if an ownership group could be found.
StevenBrunt
May 20th, 2011
12:11 am
that’s an associated press article
The headline is still deal is done
EA
May 20th, 2011
12:12 am
Not holding out hope, but the Globe and Mail just updated the front page to say Deal Not Done yet. Goodnight.
EA
May 20th, 2011
12:13 am
Not in denial Jay. I promise! Unless I am seeing things from fatigue, I just read that headline. Go gloat Jay.
StevenBrunt
May 20th, 2011
12:14 am
Atlanta Thrashers moving to Winnipeg
that’s STILL the headline at G&M
Les Habitants
May 20th, 2011
12:15 am
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/globe-on-hockey/why-bettman-fights-for-phoenix/article2028684/
kreedham
May 20th, 2011
12:15 am
I’m still hoping it’s not true but it sure doesn’t look good. I know several people that work for the Thrashers…a couple will probably get moved over to the Hawks but some will lose their jobs. If it happens I’m feeling bad for those soon to be unemployed.
Can’t believe that someone like Arthur Blank doesn’t come in and save us! Ireally believe the town would get behind the team with an owner like him.
Sage of Bluesland
May 20th, 2011
12:16 am
I guess the sheep-inaction and inability to accept reality continues into this very late hour….To you, EA….To your false-hope….I just wish we had a spweadsheet-special from Sara to truly commemorate this final insult to our intelligence.
Bettman will be in Winnipeg on Tuesday to make the grand announcement.
Keep Hockey in Atlanta
May 20th, 2011
12:17 am
So the whole thing about the group wanting to keep them here was smoke and mirrors?
Ike
May 20th, 2011
12:20 am
If I was a city that the NHL contacted about building a new building in the future I would take a long look at how they have steam lined the process for getting out of town including secret meeting to OK moving a team in advance of any sale. And the fact that they would consider a move to a 15000 person arena in a city not much more than a 10th the size of the current one that can clearly not maintain the team over a long period of time as a better option than sticking with the current city. Remember they jumped in a bailed out Buffalo and Phoenix quickly enough and the Thrashers have no debt so they would only have to help the team until a new owner could be found. That would make me very nervous if the NHL wanted me to sign for a several hundred million dollar building and they do business like that. Expansion cities beware.
oifvet
May 20th, 2011
12:22 am
are we seriously losing our team to a trailer park like winnipeg? has the nhl lost its mind? $60 million will not make up for the fact that ‘peggers will stop going to games after year 1 or 2. for all of their talk about us not going to games (which i personally did despite the incompetence of the asg), go look at their attendance records. the worst part is that their arena can seat the entire town! congratulations nhl on proving why you can’t compete in the north american sports market.
2mins
May 20th, 2011
12:23 am
This is still not over. The next step according to the WFP will be a season ticket drive that will be used to gauge if people will open thier wallets as well as thier mouths. I guess if the numbers aren’t to the NHL’s liking, they can still keep the team in Atlanta. I already have my money set aside, but will enough people? We should see next week.
Thrashers
May 20th, 2011
12:23 am
it’s pretty sad that the stories of the Thrashers moving being confirmed is first coming from sources other than out of the local area ……..
kreedham
May 20th, 2011
12:25 am
Regarding a possible AHL team here I’m guessing the Gwinnett owner would have something to say about that. I imagine he would want to move up in classification. To do so, I’m believe he would have to sell or relocate the Gladiators and then buy a current team to move or get an AHL guarantee for an expansion team.
If the team is sold it just makes no sense for the ASG to hold onto the Hawks. While it’s 2 different crowds I think it would leave a sour taste in Hawks fans as well!
2mins
May 20th, 2011
12:25 am
Sorry oifvet…. but even 14,000 people in Winnipeg paying an average of $60 will be way more money than a game in Atlanta will ever pull in.
EA
May 20th, 2011
12:26 am
Sage, no false hope here. Never has been. No one is insulting your superior intelligence. Go pat yourself on the back again. The sub title on the Globe and Mail says both True North and Bettman deny the deal. Not buying it. However, I knew I read it.
Keep Hockey in Atlanta
May 20th, 2011
12:30 am
@Kreedham couldn’t an AHL team play in Philips? I mean with the Thrashers leaving(more than likely) that is 40+ open dates that certainly won’t be filled by concerts.
Ike
May 20th, 2011
12:31 am
It is worse than that the average person in Winnipeg has less disposable income and when you do the math like 1 in 35 of the age to go will have to go to every home game. Now that might sound like plenty but take out those who cannot afford to go or have other things to do like children jobs or other commitments and the numbers look real bad real quickly. So moving the Thrashers to Winnipeg to maybe fill another few seats now rather than stick it out and fix the problem and fill the 18500 seats at the Phillips plus the fact that Atlanta is the 8th largest media market in North America and this deal makes suddenly sounds crazy.
Steve
May 20th, 2011
12:33 am
Too funny Bill Daly says the board hasn’t been asked to approve it. The two sides just agreed. How would the board have time to see it yet? We’ll see on tuesday. Why the big secrecy?
EA
May 20th, 2011
12:34 am
BTW Sage, I missed your first comment to me. I wasn’t blaming you. Bettman was. I think I have posted a number of times that I respected everyone’s decision whether to attend the games or not. No need to insult anyone. I guess you couldn’t help yourself on your second comment.
Sage of Bluesland
May 20th, 2011
12:38 am
No, I couldn’t [help myself]. It’s a learned habit on trying to get Thrashers fans to accept my perception of reality….for so many years.
Old habits die hard.
Oh well, such is life….such is the fate of incompetence (ASG). I wish the team well in Winnipeg.
thrasherdawg
May 20th, 2011
12:38 am
Kevin.
Come on, Really…you think I was serious. I was making lite of the fact. In other words, I was joking.
BTW you couldn’t afford my trailor. It’s 7000 sq ft on 48 acres. I’d probably sell to you for 2.2 million. Are you interested?
oifvet
May 20th, 2011
12:42 am
14000 paying $60 compared to the potential for 18500 people regularly with new ownership and a good product? seriously? you are from canada where the education system is supposed to be far superior to ours. how does that makes sense? don’t flatter yourselves, this is clearly not about the potential of winnipeg. this is about greed and the fact that the nhl can subsidize its railroading of glendale. if you think that this is about winnipeg then you should get your head examined. we may not be a hockey-first town, but winnipeg proved the first time what nhl mediocrity looked like. you’re in canada and you couldn’t sell tickets? seriously?
Ike
May 20th, 2011
12:43 am
It is easy for Bettman to tell others what they how they should spend their money but if he gave a rat’s but about the Thrashers he would have gotten a little more involved a few years ago and given us something worth paying our hard earned dollars on.
Mr11American
May 20th, 2011
12:46 am
Do not believe any reports until you hear it directly from the NHL.
-
It was all over, Balsillie had the Yotes and they were on their way to Hamilton. A few years before, Predator season tix were being sold in some God-forsaken Canadian village. Pittsburgh had to endure a headline just like the one that you read here.
-
Fight for your team!
-
Hockey can’t grow in Canada, it can in Atlanta. Get to work. Good luck to those who care
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
12:48 am
you crazy ?
it’s over in ATL
it’s a done deal
B. Thenet
May 20th, 2011
12:56 am
Well congrats Sage, you finally got your wish.
Must be a big night for you, now end it in the right way….Remember to cut lengthwise, not side to side.
Jason
May 20th, 2011
12:59 am
Think it’s pretty obvious where this was heading when it emerged that ASG wanted to keep both the Hawks and, more importantly, the arena.
So any buyer who keeps the team in Atlanta would also have to budget for 45-50 nights of rent. Sounds like ASG wanted the team gone all along.
(if that has changed, someone correct me).
kreedham
May 20th, 2011
1:08 am
@keephockeyinAtlanta…yea they could play in Philips but I’m not sure the AHL would approve with another minor league team close by. Plus I would think they’d rather use Gwinnett arena than have a team downtown. We’ll see what shakes down! If the team does move I expect Gwinnett will get a nice attendance bump next year….they just need to affiliate with a different team. It wouldn’t be right being a farm team of the team we just lost!
David F
May 20th, 2011
1:11 am
lets all calm down now until something is official. I am hoping beyond hope that hockey returns to Winnipeg, but would take ansoutely no joy with this being at your expense. On behalf of all good people from Wpg of which there are many, i apologize for some of the idiots from my town who are being less than classy in their comments. Please know that they are in the vast minority from our city and there is no need for any of us to bad mouth and call names at each other.
BlackAngus
May 20th, 2011
1:14 am
Deal is NOT done, don’t believe it until you hear it directly from NHL League office.
Keep Hockey in Atlanta
May 20th, 2011
1:15 am
Oh i’m sure Gwinnett will see a spike in attendance. I’ll certainly go to as many games as possible, wish I could have gone to more Thrasher games over the last 3 seasons. I wanted to go to so many more but either couldn’t get the time off or just couldn’t find anyone interested in going. I hate that i’ll probably never see NHL hockey again in Atlanta.
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
1:17 am
Denigrating Winnipeg won’t save your team. You just look classless.
When we lost the Jets, we didn’t slam Phoenix. We were upset with Bettman, and the way the league was headed. The reality for us was that we had a 40 year old arena that couldn’t generate enough revenue. It just didn’t work for us at that time.
So, stay classy Atlanta.
Charlene
May 20th, 2011
1:19 am
I have 500 people screaming outside my building right now, setting off fireworks and dancing in the streets.
Has anybody in Atlanta *ever* been that excited about the Thrashers?
B. Thenet
May 20th, 2011
1:23 am
Guffman, ever been to Jetsowner.com, or been on twitter. People from Winnipeg have been crapping on the city and fans of Atlanta for YEARS. And the abuse you have been hurling at Phoenix is legendary.
Spare me the martyr business you bloodsucker.
BlackAngus
May 20th, 2011
1:31 am
There is NO deal to move at this minute. Do not believe anything until you hear it directly from the NHL League Office.
B. Thenet
May 20th, 2011
1:31 am
Guffman, when the Canadian dollar sinks and the reaper comes for Winnipeg….remember my name
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
1:31 am
Bloodsucker? Well, Winnipeg is known for its mosquitoes.
Oh well. If I can’t placate you, I might as well whoop it up.
GO JETS GO! GO JETS GO!
I’m so happy, I have to pee.
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
1:35 am
BlackAngus, the NHL’s offiial website has curiously kentioned this story: http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=563305&navid=mod-rr-headlines
It’s over. It’s just a game of semantics to get to the done done state.
BlackAngus
May 20th, 2011
1:36 am
The Moose only averages about 8,400 fans a game in the 40-year old 15,000 seat MTS arena, where do you find more fans to support Thrashers (if they move)
Blueland Buddha
May 20th, 2011
1:38 am
Sage- you are so misguided, that I actually feel sorry for you. Don Waddell, as incompetent as he is, only has a job because there are 7-8 people above him who are so disinterested that they dont fire him. 100% of the blame goes to ownership in this case. While I can understand the notion of not wanting to support ASG, I am somewhat baffled on your utter infatuation with Waddell. If ownership cared even 1/100th to the degree that the fans do, Waddell would have been fired years ago. The ASG is a scourge on Atlanta and I wish them nothing but financial ruin to every member.
And while I am at it, Bettman and the NHL deserve an equal amount of ill will. They approved this ownership group and they are giving them the easy way out. If this happens, neither the NHL nor Atlanta Spirit will see one dime from me for a very long time.
BlackAngus
May 20th, 2011
1:53 am
FYI, the Thrashers averages about 13,500 fans per game this past season.
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
2:03 am
BA… The MTS arena was built after the Jets left. It’s a modern building. As for the attendance for Moose games, remember that is a minor league team, and for minor league teams, I believe the Moose ranked 2nd in league attendance.
As for attendance figures for Atlanta, you really need to know the price per ticket earned. If you’re only earning $30/ticket, that’s peanuts. I’d rather have 10,000 fans @ $75/ticket.
LOL
May 20th, 2011
2:13 am
I guess the NHL & ASG really don’t give a damn about anybody here in Atlanta. I for one will NEVER attend another Hawks game nor an event at Phillips Arena as long as ASG or this John Moores character own those entities. This bunch of low life losers do not deserve any of my money or my time. As for Gary Bettmen and the NHL I no longer have a choice as to whether or not I attend an NHL game. I also would hope that any of the current Thrashers players that do not wish to be relocated to Winnipeg will request they be traded, or not re-sign. I feel very sorry for those guys as well, they have no choice in this matter. If our companies upped and moved we could pursue other opportunities where we are, but not those guys.
LOL
May 20th, 2011
2:23 am
I really wish I was the Mayor of Atlanta right now because a great line from a movie should be uttered to the ASG; “We don’t need your kind around here”.
Oh-know-Canada
May 20th, 2011
2:29 am
Just watched Gearon Jr with 11alive and Hullinger.
He looks and sounds like a guy who has given up
Crazy Diamond
May 20th, 2011
2:29 am
We are so screwed. Please put us out of our misery.
Les Habitants
May 20th, 2011
2:38 am
B. Thenet,
Now the U.S. dollar is sinking. So why is it feasible not to move the business to Canada?
A Final Kick In The Teeth
May 20th, 2011
3:04 am
I’m sick and tired of all the sh!t being hurled at the hockey fans of ATL on these boards! Most of you “outsiders” have absolutely NO CONCEPT of the amount of BS and abuse we have put up with ever since the Atlanta Spirit Group was spawned from Hell itself….For those old enough to remember, ATL hockey fans were also sh!t on by the corrupt NHL back in 1980.
Anyone deluded enough to actually believe that this team wasn’t “sold” MONTHS ago needs their head examined. The only thing consistent in this story is the WEB OF LIES from everyone’s mouth who is ever quoted as having “direct knowledge of the situation”. The NHL criminals and gutless ASG punks were simply waiting for litigation to resolve itself before drawing up the final contract.
That final deal is what will be announced on Tuesday.
Anyone who bends over and shows up at this pathetic “rally” attempt is going to look like the poster-child @ss clowns the NHL and ASG WANT and NEED to wash the blood from their criminal hands.
LET THE THRASHERS GO! Let the ASG sell the Hawks, Thrashers & Philips Arena Rights and then disappear into oblivion….Sometimes you have to put a friggin stake in the heart of a monster in order to kill it, you know?
Let the Canadian Inbreeders of Tinypeg get what they deserve for trying to poach US teams for YEARS….The absolute WORST NHL TEAM in the entire league that has been CURSED since it came into existence. Within moments of the official announcement, the MTS arena will probably collapse into a pile of rubble in order to avoid heaping years of torture and humiliation upon itself from this disaster of a franchise.
THERE IS NOTHING THAT CAN BE DONE TO KEEP THE THRASHERS IN ATL…..Anyone who says anything different is LYING. The ASG has been trying to sell this team almost from the moment they bought them! This franchise, while it has had a few fine moments, is now the source of so much ILL WILL in Atlanta that the only sane thing to do is help them load the moving vans down at the Gulch and make sure they have enough gas money to actually get to Canada…..
The ASG has RUINED NHL HOCKEY for Atlanta. The NHL and Gary Bettman sat by and watched as this happened. Certainly the League could only do so much “officially” while the owners were involved in litigation amongst themselves, But Bettman had NO DESIRE to keep the Thrashers here and instead of doing much more behind the scenes to PREVENT relocation, his End Game was ALWAYS to effect relocation through both properly timed action and inaction on the part of the League for the $$$ PAYOFF. Just like a crime syndicate.
The planned “Rally” should be turned into a THRASHERS PARAPHERNALIA BURNING DEMONSTRATION to show the World that we’re tired of being sh!t upon by a bunch of numbnuts with more money than brains (ASG) and the legalized mobsters running the NHL.
Crying into your beer for the cameras over a situation that was planned and RESOLVED many months ago just makes everyone involved look like a bunch of pathetic losers….Like you can’t figure out for yourselves that you were “had” long ago, but nobody had the heart to tell you so. If you really want to make a statement, paint everyone’s @ss cheeks with a different letter, stand in line and drop trou for the cameras spelling out:
N H L & A S G C A N K I S S O U R A S S E S !!!
That’s how you make your voices heard…….Not by being a powerless puppet for Gary Bettman.
2CentsWorth
May 20th, 2011
3:18 am
Hello Atlanta Sports Fans…Good Job in the last year, lost 1 of your NASCAR CUP races and your NHL team. If you LIKE the sport, you need to SUPPORT the sport. By SUPPORT, I mean you need to BUY TICKETS, not watch it on TV or buy some cable sports package, but actually go the venue and support your team. I love hockey (yes, I live in Winnipeg), but I also love NASCAR. I have been to 5 races in the last 3 years, at an average cost of about a thousand dollars per race (tickets, airfare, hotel), and I have supported the Manitoba Moose and plan to support what ever hockey team we have here next year…oh yeah, you may want to familiarize yourselves with the CFL if you want to watch any Football over the next year or so.
John
May 20th, 2011
3:24 am
Sorry thrashers fans although I am canadian and am glad to see winnipeg get a team back, I feel for the few of you who actually are passionate about your team and believed that the NHL would care enough to fight on your behalf. the bitter truth is that this is all about business and politics. I remember how painful it was to lose the Vancouver Grizzlies and it did not make sense to me how the NBA could be so cruel to rip the hearts out of those who care about their teams. Time will heal your pain eventually, trust me.
Winnipeg = Poverty
May 20th, 2011
3:58 am
The good people of Atlanta can now sit back and watch as the NHL slices its own wrists. A city of 730,000 with only a Provincial population of only 1.2 million and throw in the fact that the MTS Centre is a glorified minor league arena and you a have a financial disaster in waiting. Winnipeg couldn’t make it in the NHL in 1990 when team payrolls started to top $10 million and they certainly won’t be able to make it now when team payrolls are reaching $60 million. Fold the Atlanta franchise without any buyers in Atlanta and hold a dispersal draft but don’t waste the rest of the NHL’s time on the joke that is the city of Winnipeg.
Blackhawks Fan
May 20th, 2011
4:30 am
I’m sure it sucks Thrashers fans but you guys have been at the bottom of the attendance every year. Even 06-07 when the Thrashers had 97 points there were over 2500 empty seats. Just so you guys now most people in other cities think you’re the worst fans because every time our teams play yours the stadiums are empty. You will probably never get a hockey team again and that’s sad. You guys should show up for the Hawks & Braves, you never know. Not being mean just honest.
marco polo
May 20th, 2011
4:35 am
done and done, the Thrashers had their chance at a legit superstar in 1999, but took Stefan instead of now back to back leading scorers in the NHL. Another example of poor drafting was in 2003 (one of the deepest drafts in recent history), when they passed up guys like Phaneuf, Carter, Brown, and Parise for Braydon Coburn (who was traded for 83 games of Alexi Zhitnik, who by the time he was a Thrasher was slow and ineffective).
Atlanta has pretty much blown its second chance at an NHL team, and it isn’t just the Thrashers that struggle to attract fans in Atlanta, the Braves have about 200k less fans a year than the NL average, and they are an established team. Look at how greatful the Minnesota Wild fans are to have a team again, they sellout nightly, they truely get what a treat having an NHL team is. I love how all of these fans come out of the woodwork when it is time for the team to leave, yet Canadian cities that have worse teams that make more than the Thrashers yearly, and it has nothing to do with building size, the Thrashers are outearned by the Edmonton Oilers, who BTW, have the smallest rink in the NHL, yet still sell out every game with back to back dead last years. Heck, almost all of the Canadian teams used to have PPV packages that were around $15 a game, and people payed that to watch a game on TV yet Thrashers fans (who we are to believe are completely dedicated), cannot spend at least $30 on tickets to support their team. Another indicator of team strength has to be the amount of games that are not televised, that has to say something.
Hockey in the South seems to not be working. The Florida Panthers have been known to cover seats with tarps to make their situation seem better, the Lightning are given most of their home games in clusters to cater to the snowbirds that make up a significant part of attendance (not saying all). Move Florida to Quebec and the Coyotes to Hartford (considering the NHL screwed them big time, there is a reason that there is still a Whalers booster club all these years later).
Why don’t you bash the NHL, its not as if Atlanta knows how to support real sports (racing cars and running from end to end of a wood floor are not sports IMO).
marco polo
May 20th, 2011
4:37 am
Winnipeg = Poverty, how do you explain the strong gates for teams like Detroit that are in cities hit hard by the recession, they find a way of making it to the games with a shrinking city population of around 500k
Chris Vivlamoremoney
May 20th, 2011
4:49 am
This is absurd, I am almost done with the NHL. Chicago would be a good example of fans boycotting..I like how dim-witted canadians meagerly ask if we were not going to the games on purpose. Of course we weren’t, Atlanta isn’t Manitoba, there are people in Atlanta and they aren’t frozen. There is also money in Atlanta, look at the buildings, it’s not Winnipeg, people don’t travel by horse and buggy, it’s a big city with the world’s busiest airport. The funny thing though is that people try to knock “hockey in the south” when Atlanta is made up of mostly transplants, that’s right..people for your neck of the woods, hockey markets. doh. They boycotted in Chicago because of ownership, maybe..perhaps maybe hockey fans here are just as real as original six fans. What a world, every report is hearsay or flat our fraudulent, people easily stereotype and make accusations without any merit to them at all. According to TSN, Atlanta moved to that frozen piehole months ago and I look out my window and see Philips Arena every day. Doh. NO DEAL, can whineypeg print that? c’mon vivlapeg..you write for them, print it bigger so they can comprehend it. the NHL would be stupid if they allowed canada to poach teams, what message does that send to other owners and teams who may obviously struggle at some point like quite a few teams over the years have.
Delta Air Lines aims to get smaller | The Biz Beat
May 20th, 2011
5:37 am
[...] Deal not done to sell and move Thrashers to Winnipeg [...]
stee
May 20th, 2011
5:41 am
NEVER believe any reports from the The Globe and Mail of Toronto or the Toronto Sun. They have got to be the worse nhl newsreporting papers.
Chris Vivlamoremoney
May 20th, 2011
5:54 am
been reading the AJC long stee?
Manitoba Vivlamore
May 20th, 2011
6:02 am
I also enjoy how every media outlet there is says fans should have supported this franchise through years of what amounts to hockey genocide. The world takes offense when a cruel dictator terrorizes their own people, we send war planes and not to mention tax payers money to stop the tyranny..yet when in regards to atlanta hockey, the fans are supposed to accept it and gladly get on the train Auschwitz because our Nazi owners said so. Yes, this is what I compare it to, you dim-wits who criticize the common atlanta fan have no idea what this “team” has done to alienate fans and ultimately kill them.
Sage of Bluesland
May 20th, 2011
6:17 am
“[B.Thenet] Guffman, when the Canadian dollar sinks and the reaper comes for Winnipeg….remember my name”
Classy. Just what I’d expect. Oh, and by the way, my wish “all along” was for Waddell to be fired a long time ago. I wanted to rebuild “again”, but with a completely different architect and staff.
Blueland Buddha–No, you are actually right on placing the plame squarely on ownership. I altered my stance on Waddell being really just a symptom of the real cause of the problem. However, I still identify Don Waddell as the primary decision-maker on which so many blunders have been made (as ownership certainly didn’t care). It wasn’t ownership who “guaranteed” making the playoffs. It wasn’t ownership who informed us the grand plan was to “build through the draft!”. It wasn’t ownership who blustered about being relatively ahead of the Philadelphia Flyers at we neared our third “Five-Year Plan”.
But, I do agree–it WAS ownership that kept this clown employed far longer than he should have.
It angered me seeing Barry Melrose on ESPN chiding the city of Atlanta, “You have to support your team”. We did, Barry. The NHL is responsible for ensuring a proper ownership for one of its franchisees–and that said ownership is responsible, stable, and committed.
The NHL failed the fans of Atlanta. The ownership situations (plural) failed the fans of Atlanta. The management of the franchise (to a lesser degree–but still present) failed the fans of Atlanta.
I failed to put my hard-earned dollar into their undeserving and uncaring pocket. I’m not ashamed whatsoever.
Ask yourself the question: “Who failed who first?”
Thus, your answer. Best of luck, organization. I wish the players and new employees of said organization well. I will never subsidize incompetence. Know that before you try to pee in pocket and tell me it’s raining….
Blue Liner
May 20th, 2011
6:21 am
Sounds like the only way Waddell leaves town…..
Bob Batchelor
May 20th, 2011
6:31 am
It’s a shame Atlanta can lose their second NHL team. Bettman knows they are moving to Winnipeg. All the dribble coming from his mouth is just covering up what he already knows is going to happen. It is a shame Tom Glavine couldn’t get investors here in Atlanta to keep the Thrashers in Atlanta. Guess the Gwinnett Gladiators will have to do now for your hockey fix!
We've Been Bamboozled.....
May 20th, 2011
6:39 am
The only way Atlanta gets an AHL team would be if one moved here. The AHL isn’t looking to add any more teams in the near future. So unless the NHL adds some teams in the future or a current AHL team folds, relocation is the only way for an AHL team to be in Atlanta.
Big and Little
May 20th, 2011
6:48 am
So I bet I get screwed getting a refund for next years season tickets which I paid up front.
Eugene
May 20th, 2011
6:52 am
This whole thing really sucks for Atlanta fans. Apparently the NHL had secret back room meetings and they approved the deal months ago, meanwhile ASG was only happy to force fans to pay deposits for renewing the season tickets. Someone should launch a class action lawsuit against the ASG for fraud and deception. That money they took from fans was generating interest in their bank accounts and you can be sure the fans won’t probably get the interest back. They screwed the fans over while lining their own pockets.
Trevor
May 20th, 2011
7:07 am
NYR fan here:
Really pulling for you guys to beat the odds and stay put. It really is hard to believe that it was just four years ago when we had our playoff series. I’d like nothing more than for our teams to go at it again at some point in the years to come. The atmosphere in both arenas during those four games was absolutely electric and it’d be an absolute shame for the NHL to vacate a top ten media market that was methodically poisoned by massive failure, stupidity and incompetence from your ownership and management the levels of which couldn’t possibly be duplicated in any sport. Hoping you guys can weather this storm and see brighter days ahead. Good luck.
Falcons Football
May 20th, 2011
7:14 am
Not enought people in Atlanta care enough to pay what it costs to support an NHL team , especially in these difficult times. It isn’t going to get any better and any prospective owner knows this. Support what matters. Football, Baseball, Basketball. Ice hockey has always been an after thought in Atlanta and only if the team is doing well. You so called fans have been paying peanuts for tickets for long enough. How many of you would actually pay the true cost of tickets? The NHL is gate driven and if another city has an owner willing to buy this team then such is life. It belongs to no one.
Let NONE In
May 20th, 2011
7:25 am
It appears the Canadian writer worked himself in a frenzy and sprayed his shorts
Tony C.
May 20th, 2011
7:27 am
Anytime you find yourself in NYC remember to put some poop in front of the door to NHL headquarters.
Words fail me in describing my anger at the league, and the ASG.
Let NONE In
May 20th, 2011
7:34 am
Here on out the Stanley Cup will be called a Piss Cup.
East Point Bob
May 20th, 2011
7:35 am
Just what are you canada idiots trying to prove on this and other Atlanta blogs ? Just what ?
You idiots think you own the game of hockey, Wrong, you do not. Why don’t you stupid children shut up and stay off the Atlanta blogs, you show your ignorance of life itself, You people up there are sicko’s !
Steve-o
May 20th, 2011
7:44 am
This whole thing really sucks for Atlanta fans. Apparently the NHL had secret back room meetings and they approved the deal months ago,
———————————————————————————-
And apparently Bettman has lied and lied about it. I cannot stand that guy. I don’t trust a word he says.
Mooseberg
May 20th, 2011
7:48 am
Mr. Bettmam…NEVER and I mean NEVER cross path’s with me. Backroom dealing liar
Manitoba Vivlamore
May 20th, 2011
7:57 am
I enjoy how everyone comes out of the woodwork to tell people how to spend their money or how they should have spent it..on a crappy product ran into the ground. I really wish comprehension was a world-wide understanding, literally.
Melrose should buy me a new motorbike, because I said so, he should spend his money how I tell him to. Typical idiot with a public forum, Betteman, same thing, he should buy me a new humidor for my cigars since I’ll have no other hobbies when the NHL locks out again and when my favorite team obviously moves to some frozen turd hole infested with parasites claiming to be holier than thou hockey fans. Remember that lockout Gary? Why does the media, fans, people in general insist upon telling Thrasher fans how to spend their money or that they should have spent their money on a fraudulent business to better the ASG, who apparently deserves some sort of pity now? No thanks, no one is going to tell me how to spend my money or how I should have spent it, especially when they don’t live here, they aren’t a fan of this team, and they simply are not cognizant of what has taken place here. For the cheerleader fans of this team who were only here for the novelty, you can go to Canada with them, you aren’t telling me how to spend my money either.
Steve-o
May 20th, 2011
7:58 am
I really expected the Globe & Mail story to be confirmed this morning, but this is still dragging on. I’m sure it’s a done deal except for signing on the dotted line. Now the NHL will try to drag it on a little longer because Bettman has egg on his face — apparently he was on camera during the Bruins/Lightning game while looking at the article on his Blackberry and the look on his face was priceless because the article contradicts all of his lies. “I can confirm there is no deal to move the Thrashers, etc. etc.” Yeah, right, Gary!
angryATLfan
May 20th, 2011
8:03 am
so, ummm, is the rally still happening? Go jets Go!
Manitoba Vivlamore
May 20th, 2011
8:04 am
yes angryATLfan, the rally is in a giant hole, go find one.
Sean
May 20th, 2011
8:06 am
I had been an NL fan all my life, but since they took the Expos out of Montreal I can’t bring myself to even follow the box scores of Washington. My sympathies to all hockey fans in Georgia. The Thrashers were on the cusp of becoming a very solid team. It is true that the “fat lady hasn’t sung yet”, and judging from the dirty dealings in Phoenix we can’t know what pies Bettman’s fingers are in. My son and I played shinny hockey years ago here in Montreal with a couple of guys vacationing from Atlanta. They came up just so they could play some outdoor hockey in the winter. Winnipegers would do well to remember how it felt to lose the Jets when commenting here. Maybe there will be a reprieve….all the best from Montreal.
EA
May 20th, 2011
8:07 am
It appears it is a done deal if the test market for sales is successful. I read the rumor that the league wants to see north of 10,000 and a 3 year commitment. If that is true, that is a BIG commitment. Especially with the Thrashers. Anyway, to the person who asked why Detroit fans support their team in bad economic times. There is a simple answer–success and Ken Holland. We don’t have a long history with banners handing in the rafters. To those of you who want to bash the Atlanta fans, what goes around comes around. There are way more than a few of us. Some chose to continue to support hockey for the love of the sport and the team. Others found other ways to spend their extra money on something that is not constantly frustrating, somewhat more successful or to simply send a message that these pathetic owners and former GM do not deserve anything until they commit to a winning product on the ice.
BOB FROM ACCOUNT TEMPS
May 20th, 2011
8:07 am
in true asg and d-wad style, if they are all denying a deal, then you can believe a deal is done! they have always rpovided the opposite of the truth.
Mooseberg
May 20th, 2011
8:09 am
Peggers watch what happens first….move the team and players immediately stop signing….all you have to do to watch the future, key on Andrew Ladd the captain. He will not resign if the team is moved.
BOB FROM ACCOUNT TEMPS
May 20th, 2011
8:10 am
little boys with big boy toys never works out
Let NONE In
May 20th, 2011
8:10 am
This seems like a good time to remind everyone of “Select a Seat” tomorrow. My assigned time is at 10AM. See everyone there.
Steve-o
May 20th, 2011
8:16 am
I had been an NL fan all my life, but since they took the Expos out of Montreal I can’t bring myself to even follow the box scores of Washington. My sympathies to all hockey fans in Georgia.
———————————————-
I can relate. Due to this soap opera in Atlanta, I’ve lost interest in the NHL playoffs and have been watching the NBA — something I hardly ever do. And the NBA playoff games are really exciting this year! The OKC Thunder/Dallas Mavs series is great – so many talented players, and they’re playing with tons of hustle. Good stuff.
EA
May 20th, 2011
8:24 am
Let None in–you messed your joke up since the Select-a-Seat is scheduled for the afternoon. Can you imagine how the team is feeling? They are a young group. Going from the glitz and glamour of a metropolitan city to Winnipeg. I remember what it is like to be in my 20s.
It is hard to watch to the hype of the playoffs when you realize that hockey, like other sports, is a cut throat business. No one cares about the fans. They care about the almighty dollar that the fans pay to see the team.
Jackets21
May 20th, 2011
8:36 am
Early Friday morning, Ken Campbell of The Hockey News explained what the delay in the announcement might be:
What still has to be determined, according to a source, is how much of that purchase price goes to the Atlanta Spirit, a group that is hardly dealing from a position of strength when it comes to selling the team. It has been widely reported that the purchase price of the team is $110 million, with an additional $60 million going to the NHL in the form of a relocation fee.
Apparently, the Atlanta Spirit owner Bruce Levenson wants a bigger piece of the purchase price and is trying to get a portion of that $60 million from the NHL. It’s believed the league, meanwhile, not only wants the $60 million relocation fee, but a portion of the $110 million purchase price. In fact, there’s a possibility that the Atlanta Spirit might end up with only $80 million to $100 million of the purchase price.
By all accounts, the Atlanta-to-Winnipeg deal will happen in the very near future, but when you’re dealing with very large financial transactions, it’s going to take some time. Meanwhile, fans in Atlanta can only continue to wait and hope for the best.
Brent
May 20th, 2011
8:37 am
I love hockey but have grown to despise the NHL over the years. That league makes MLB look well-managed. It has been spiralling downward since the Rangers won the Stanley Cup in 1994, losing the momentum of that media-centric event to the 1994 lockout and and THE ENTIRE SEASON OF 2004-05 to another. And SCREW YOU, TOO, Atlanta Spirit…you did everything you could to kill interest in the game in this town and now that hick prairie town reaps the benefit.
I’ve been a season ticket holder for the Gwinnett Gladiators for many years and have been generally satisfied with my experience; I will continue to support Gwinnett and the players who begin their careers there, but I am DONE with the NHL.
steve
May 20th, 2011
8:50 am
What will happen to youth hockey if the Thrashers leave?
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
8:55 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsI5QCDRN-4
look at all those igloos.. how can those people walk in shorts in the freezing cold !!
Wonder how the ATL rally will compare to this impromptu one ?
Common Sense 101
May 20th, 2011
8:57 am
I love all these “You have to support your team Atlanta fans!” misguided comments. There are so many more fun things to do any day or night of the year in Atlanta than in Whineypeg that you simply have no idea how competitive it is when fighting for consumer discretionary dollars here. This is how the ASG fought to attract consumers and their recreational spending $$$ to Philips Arena:
“Atlanta’s average annual payroll over the past five years ranked next to last in the league, according to Forbes.com.”
According to most Canadians on this blog, this is the formula for success in Canadian NHL Hockey: Put a p*ss-poor product on the ice and dumb@ss hockey fans will sellout the arena every night to watch inferior hometown hockey games…..Of course Atlantans aren’t so stupid to blindly attend hockey games when the ownership fails to invest barely more than the league minimum to attract quality players.
The term “Salary Cap” was never uttered by any Thrashers Owner.
In fact, Atlanta Hockey Fans should be COMMENDED for continuing to show up in the numbers that we did while knowing that this ownership group itself wasn’t fully-invested in providing us with a competitive on-ice product.
ONE post-season appearance in the history of the franchise…..ZERO playoff victories…..Team salaries at or near the league minimum year after year…..”Bottomless” popcorn buckets that are taken in the back and REFILLED FROM A FRIGGIN BAG OF STALE POPCORN!!! (No….That’s NOT a joke!)
But Canadians say they would sell out their arena every game for such nonsense. Well, you guys up North must be the Ultimate Tools! That’s NOT a recipe for success in this town that will hardly even miss the Thrashers once they’re gone…..Our Thrashers season ticket money just went to Georgia Tech Football season tickets, and at a substantial savings.
Atlanta FANS didn’t fail the Thrashers. The Thrashers Ownership and Management failed the Atlanta Fans. Philips Arena was at or near capacity for the first few weeks of every season. But by Feb (some years sooner), the Thrashers were already out of the playoff race yet again.
It’s unreasonable to expect a Sunbelt City to pack an ice hockey arena every night once their team has been eliminated from the playoffs midway through the season…..Get it? Probably not……
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
8:59 am
DON CHERRY IS A FLAMIN IDIOT!!! BIG MOUTH BAFOON!!
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
9:01 am
Lets go to war with Winnepeg.
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:06 am
unlike bin laden, Canada is real
You Keep What You Kill Mr. Bettman!
May 20th, 2011
9:07 am
The FUTURE of Thrashers hockey in its new Canadian home:
“More than 100 Winnipeg Jets fans gathered to celebrate at the intersection of Portage and Main as word spread that the city may be getting an NHL team again …”
REALLY? MORE than 100 showed up? This is so freakin’ FUNNY that it makes me forget about losing the Thrashers. Within 3 years Bettman will take another $60 Million relocation payoff to move the team again — Just watch and see!
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
9:08 am
what up with the FLorida Panthers take them. They have worse attendance!
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:08 am
“It’s unreasonable to expect a Sunbelt City to pack an ice hockey arena”
WORD
Thrashers Will Draw LESS Attendance/Game Next Season
May 20th, 2011
9:12 am
Hey G52PIM228! Here’s what your fellow Canadians are saying on the blogs up North:
“I will be happy to see another NHL team in Canada. I hope this time around the Winnipeg fans will put their money where their mouth is now. Going to NHL hockey games is not for the faint of heart. For my two sons and I to go to a game, yes one game, it cost me over $700.00 when you count in parking, gas, tickets and very, very small snacks, dare I order a beer? Winnipeg fans have got to be ready to spend some big hard earned bucks if they want to keep a new team there. By the way this is my last year taking in NHL games live. I’ve decided I need to focus my spending on things like food, gas, heat. Not my idea, but my wife convinced me that we just can’t afford live games anymore. Good luck Winnipeg, and enjoy your team.”
Steve-o
May 20th, 2011
9:13 am
OK, I have work to do, so gotta go. Not the case with whacked out serial poster G52… I’m sure his irrational and irrelevant posts will continue throughout the day.
KLS1
May 20th, 2011
9:14 am
I love how everyone talks about us not going to games anymore like it is free.
We just went throught 3 years of the worst economy since 1929 and have been living with a franchise that cannot compete year after year and we are supposed to just throw money at the owners so they keep the franchise here…I don’t think so.
I have been a season ticket holder on and off since the beginning and I don’t believe it would make any difference how many people supported this team financially, these ASG guys bought them to sell them to the highest bidder…and the highest bidder ain’t gonna be in Atlanta.
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
9:14 am
you cant even make planes. that “AVRO Arrow” really worked out
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
9:21 am
You keep what you kill–the other 500 were outside of Charlene’s appartment building! Common Sense 101-fantastic post.
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:21 am
I live in Arizona tard.
Thanks for saving my coyotes
awwooooooooooo
Get The Puck Out
May 20th, 2011
9:22 am
Listen to this. Liberty Media is in talks to buy Barnes and Noble for a estimated price of $1.04 BILLION dollars. This is the same company that owns your Atlanta Braves. $1.04 billion.
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:22 am
G52 needs some serious help. Slagging a city for getting the team isn’t the answer either, is it? What if it was Vegas, KC or Seattle? We;’d do the same? Or because it is a city from Canada?
KLS1
May 20th, 2011
9:22 am
Just heard a report that the only thing holding up finalizing the sale is whether Don Waddell gets 8 or 10 years guaranteed deal to run the new Winnepeg franchise!
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
9:23 am
Even Charli Sheen knows where the real fans live.
DUH! Winning-Peg!
I like how you feel sorry for the players moving to Winnipeg. You thimk the Stanley Cup champions from Chicago appreciated being traded to your lifeless team with no fan support?
Professional players want to play for a winnimg franchise. Flake players will play in a nice city so they can concemtrate on their sun tans. After all, why did Teemu Selanne get upset by being traded from Winnipeg to a nice city? Many players prefer playing for a real hockey city instead of these experiment cities with ignorant and unsupportive fans that couldn’t be bothered to pay a lousy $30 per ticket.
The NHL got their 10 year US TV deal. They don’t need Atlanta anymore.
Since most of you are being ignorant to Winnipeg, I decided to tell it like it is. Good job not supporting your team. Look where that got you?
GO JETS GO!
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:24 am
G52 is also jealous that fans would have an impromptu rally downtown – something that would never ever happen in Arizona.
Get The Puck Out
May 20th, 2011
9:25 am
I just hope you have to support a team that loses on a consistent basis for….say 10 or 11 years. I’ll check back with you then.
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:26 am
Steve-o the Yotes are feeling a hunger and smell a scent of urine from the sacrificed thrasher. a scent of cats is ignored from the taste of thrasher meat. a sacrificed thrasher so the yote with big tail can live. i get the thrasher from behind over a table bang, bang, bang. it felt more like a man and not like a bird when i release.
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
9:26 am
And that was at 1:19 a.m. according to Charlene’s post. WOW!
@radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
9:27 am
how many children have we crippled or killed in this fake war in Iraq & afghanistan ?
Every time a Bush is elected two things happen
1) We invade Iraq
2) The price of oil doubles
Let’s here it for Jeb Bush, future president of the USA
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
9:28 am
I’ve heard some people say that hockey players might not want to move to places where there is actually ICE in the winter. We are told that unrestricted free agents won’t sign in Winnipeg.
Anybody here ever hear of any of these guys?: Teemu Selanne, Keith Tkachuk, Thomas Steen, Dale Hawerchuk, Phil Housley, Nikolai Khabiboulin, Kris Draper, Dave Babych, Alexei Zhamnov, Teppo Numminen, Laurie Boschman, Craig Janney, Paul MacLean, Scott Arniel or Anders Hedberg. How about Bobby Hull? He wasn’t a bad hockey player.
Since most people from the US, especially Southern US, are not hockey fans – I will tell you. These are all players who signed in Winnipeg and moved to Winnipeg. The majority of NHL players grew up playing in Canadian towns like Red Deer, Swift Current, Brandon and Humboldt. Winnipeg won’t be a problem for them. The League is made up mainly of CANADIANS!
There are two types of professional hockey players. Some don’t really care about the game – they care more about the stuff they are doing after they get off the ice. A REAL hockey player wants to play where the game means something and the team doesn’t have to give tickets away to inflate their attendance figures. You’re right – there are a small number of players who have lost sight of the game and care more about golfing in January than playing hockey. You don’t want a pud like that on your team anyway.
If the game can survive in places like Edmonton, Calgary, St. Paul, Montreal, Detroit – Winnipeg will do just fine. Look for more teams to move from markets that are losing money. Quebec will have a team within a couple of seasons. Hamilton, London and Saskatoon will also be circling over the next few years.
Thrashers Will Draw LESS Attendance/Game Next Season
May 20th, 2011
9:28 am
WOW! The only place in North America that could be considered a worse place to live than the frozen wasteland of Manitoba — The Hellhole Desert of Arizona! Must be proud of yourself!
And we didn’t save “your Coyotes”….Your Dumb@ss City of Glendale just put every one of you on the hook for an extra $25 MILLION in taxes per year for up to the next TEN YEARS….Not to mention what Bettman will do to increase ticket and concession prices to show the NHL’s LOVE for you and your Coyotes……
See how that works?
KLS1
May 20th, 2011
9:28 am
By the way my canadian friends, you can do me one favor if the Thrashers come to your town.
Please throw Zach Bogosian in a frozen lake if he posts another season with a leagues worst -27. If we had done this we may have made the playoffs and wouldn’t be having this relocation conversation.
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:29 am
So we don’t have a downtown in Glendale. We still have a hockey team tho
chaz
May 20th, 2011
9:32 am
Im sorry to take your team if they do leave. I am ecstatic, but remember how it felt for me.
I think some players are going to be excited to be part of something special like playing in Canada. Some not, for sure, but alot of players are from rural Canada anyways, and the NHL returning to Winnipeg is going to be a feelgood story of the year in Canada. Like it or not, the MTS center is going to be electric next year!
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
9:32 am
@ @radeksmom…crippled kids..you liberal freek shut up and go back to brushing your armpit hair.
EA
May 20th, 2011
9:32 am
Big Buff signed for 5 years when he thought the team was staying here. A. Ladd would not sign when all of the speculation about a move started. Just remember Guffman, you are getting the same team we had. They aren’t winners. Yet. Because they are such great guys, I wish them nothing but the best whatever happens. We do know however that there are ones who absolutely love our city and will be very sad to leave.
chaz
May 20th, 2011
9:34 am
I bet you they are all sad to leave. Its been their home. Not only that, im sure they have come to love Atlanta. Im sure its an awesome city.
But they are also professionals, and get paid well to do so. Buf grew up 2 hours from Winnipeg, so im sure he knows what to expect.
Freeways
May 20th, 2011
9:34 am
Some guys referred to Atlanta as “glitsy”? OMG…. hardly.
Dirty, grimy and the Atlanta Olympics were the worst in history. The only good thing to come out of Atlanta is the Music.
I’ve been to Atlanta and I’ve been to Winnipeg. Winnipeg may be smaller, but I would feel a helluvalot safer walking to my car following a Jet’s game in Winnipeg at 11:00 at night than I would in Atlanta.
Some guy in this thread also said “we should go to war with Winnepeg”. How about this; you bring two lines and goalie and I’ll bring my team – we’ll play a friendly game of street hockey at Portage and Main (in Winnipeg). Loser has to buy a round!!
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:35 am
they will be excited to play in front of knowledgable fans and a packed house in winnipeg
Sandy
May 20th, 2011
9:35 am
If the Thrashers didn’t trade ALL of their STAR PLAYERS over the years I think the fans would support the team by attending more games and buying more merchandise.
It would also help if the concessionaires didn’t always run out of water and hamburgers. The Thrashers have no big name players anymore so where’s the excitement?
Sage of Bluesland
May 20th, 2011
9:37 am
Off my meds again….mom wrote computer password on my hand so I can log in.
Relocation News: All Winnipeg NHL related news | Illegal Curve Hockey
May 20th, 2011
9:37 am
[...] Journal Constitution: Deal not done to sell and move Thrashers. Vivlamore has been on top of this story from [...]
Sandy
May 20th, 2011
9:38 am
This ain’t gonna be an Atlanta/Calgary Flames. The new team name will be the Winnipeg WIMPS!
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
9:38 am
I have to say that I am thinking about all that I can do with the money I spend on the Thrashers. I love hockey. I would have continued to support it despite never having much to cheer about with the Thrashers. I chose to support the team instead of not, so that hockey would continue in Atlanta. It was also great to see the other NHL players from the teams I enjoy come to town. Nashville is not far if the sour taste in my mouth about NHL hockey and Bettman disappears. I will miss it very much, but if the move is true, I know that I will enjoy spending those $$ on something that is not so frustrating and constantly disppointing.
Winnipeg Facts You Never Knew
May 20th, 2011
9:39 am
According to Environment Canada, Winnipeg is the coldest city in the world with a population of over 600,000 based on the average night-time temperature during December, January and February, inclusive.
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
9:40 am
G52 – yes you do. And if you bunch of financial wizards in AZ throw another $25M into the firepit next year you may even have them for the following season. The inevitable is coming and you either know it or you are delusional. Your team will be on its way to Quebec City.
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
9:41 am
playing ice hockey in a cold environment .. hmm… might just be crazy enough to work
@Winnipeg fact
May 20th, 2011
9:42 am
Thanks Alex Trebek – sounds pretty good for a HOCKEY team. But when we buy the Hawks we’ll make them play outside too.
Snoman
May 20th, 2011
9:42 am
Hey Atlanta Thrashers fans, it is time to start talking in the only language that the A$$ CLOWNS understand – Class Action Lawsuit!! If they sell the team to move it, they will have plenty of money that really belongs to the fans of Atlanta who have only been given incompetent management and been lied to about commitment to winning for seven grueling years. Let’s give them what they deserve for once and get our piece of the pie that they are taking away from us. Season ticket holders and fans of the last seven years unite!! Fight back in A$$ CLOWN language!!
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
9:42 am
typo-disappointing.
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:43 am
Keep slagging Winnipeg – it doesn’t change a thing. So whatever makes you feel better Sandy and Winnipeg Facts – maturity has lost you both.
Winnipeg Facts You Never Knew
May 20th, 2011
9:46 am
In 2004, Winnipeg had the fourth-highest overall crime rate among Canadian Census Metropolitan Areas listed, with 12,167 Criminal Code of Canada offences per 100,000 inhabitants; only Regina, Saskatoon, and Abbotsford had higher crime rates. Winnipeg had the highest rate among centres with populations greater than 500,000. The crime rate was 50% higher than that of Calgary, and more than double that of Toronto. Statistics Canada states that in 2005, Manitoba had the highest decline of overall crime in Canada at nearly 8%; however, in 2010 the province topped all others in violent crime rates.
ThrasherFan
May 20th, 2011
9:46 am
I love all this Go Jets Go nonsense. As if Winnipeg will be happy to get the Thrashers, who weren’t the Jets, and rename them the Jets just so they can have their “Jets” back. I will laugh my a** off if your name becomes the Winnipeg Moose and have worse uni’s than the Coyotes did. Actually, how you you keep the name and make your marketing gimmick “Welcome to Blueland.” Oh wait…
Screw the NHL and screw Winnipeg. The people celebrating on that you tube video were too young to even remember hockey there.
I’m done with the NHL – will be sending my gear back to NHL.com – burnt.
Atlanta Native
May 20th, 2011
9:47 am
Freeways-so silly comparing an inner city of 420,000 to a metropolitan area of 5 million. Have you ever been to Buckhead to name one? Don’t make a fool of yourself.
sisu
May 20th, 2011
9:48 am
Common Sense 101 well written!
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:48 am
Bitter man. Don’t inhale the smoke ThrasherFan…
canofpeas
May 20th, 2011
9:50 am
i’m obviously bitter but am taking some enjoyment out of the 100 people that showed up at the hallowed portage and main. what a hockey hotbed. NHL – you get what you deserve for leaving us high and dry. Enjoy that 70th ranked media market and dealing with relocating this team again once the newness and next recession hit. Which is probably soon. The NHL is dead to me.
Winnipeg Facts You Never Knew
May 20th, 2011
9:50 am
Coldest City in the World + Highest Violent Crime Rate in Canada = Winnipeg, Manitoba
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:54 am
Thanks Winnipeg Facts! Does it change this situation? NOPE!
Brian west palm beach
May 20th, 2011
9:54 am
Kabul is a more deserving city than whinnypeg and if given a choice i would have rather seen osama bin laden buy this team than any canadian.
ThrasherFan
May 20th, 2011
9:55 am
SportsFan – you must be from Canada. I am bitter because of this piss poor ownership group and the NHL who didn’t lift one finger to help this city.
I am also bitter that Jets fans feel entitled to other cities team, especially after it happened to them once. Canada will always draw well for Hockey as it has no other sports. At least in the US we have options…
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:55 am
Brian – you prove why Americans get painted as ignorant. Well done sir.
kent
May 20th, 2011
9:59 am
Players want to play in a city that has fans and ownership that is passionate sbout hockey. That’snot the case in Atlanta no matter how you try to paint it. There are a core of loyal fans but most of the city doesn’t give a damn. This ownership group never gave the team a chance and the incompetent GM didn’t help So long!
SportsFan
May 20th, 2011
9:59 am
I am from Minnesota, but with ties in Canada. Actually there are other sports aside from hockey that are “draws”. Let me know if you want me to get into that though. I would be bitter at ASG too – talk about dropping the ball, puck and anything you can think of.
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
10:00 am
Winnipeg is COLD, Winnipeg is SMALL, Winnipeg has crime (although WAY WAY WAY less than Atlanta) but Winnipeg is taking your team. Soon. Say whatever you want – whatever makes it hurt less. Your team is gone. Call us another name here and see if it changes anything.
Stick'em
May 20th, 2011
10:02 am
If this goes through they wont move till next year. I say that if they plan on moving the team that ALL of Atlanta refuse to attend any games. Make them sorry for treating ATL fans like crap!!!
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
10:02 am
Murder rates per 100,000
Winnipeg: 3.5
Atlanta: 25.0
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
10:03 am
You are 7 times more likely to be murdered in Atlanta than you are in Winnipeg. Even more so if you are a rapper
Puck Like A Porn Star
May 20th, 2011
10:05 am
What a classless conversation on both sides. This is one part of hockey I won’t miss.
Phoenix Coyotes: Roc’s Watchdog Report – Cool Your Jets Winnipeg! | phoenix arizona sports, news, blogs, scores, schedules, photos, The Fan AM 1060, KDUS, AZ Sports Talk, roc and manuch, kevin mccabe, phoenix suns, phoenix coyotes, arizona car
May 20th, 2011
10:05 am
[...] AJC: Deal Not Done [...]
ThrasherFan
May 20th, 2011
10:05 am
SportsFan – CFL probably draws but I haven’t heard a single news piece about the league in a decade. I know soccer is taking a good foothold, but example ONE of how an ownership group fails it’s fans is Toronto. I see a lot of empty seats for the Toronto MLS games after losing over and over and over again… Maybe they should be moved? I’m sure rasslin’ draws well too – maybe Chris Jericho will be happy.
thrasherdawg
May 20th, 2011
10:06 am
So Bettman says Atlanta can’t find an owner.
The ASG only received clear title of the Thrashers 5 months ago…you can’t sell a house in 5 months much less a very complex 110 million dollar business.
Bettman should put Atlanta fans on notice…You have 1 year to find an owner. The current logic now is like divorcing your wife because she burnt the toast. Bettman is making a knee-jerk reaction.
jd
May 20th, 2011
10:06 am
The one thing I won’t miss about this… the fighting on twitter, blogs, facebook, and message boards between Canadians and Atlantans..and the in-fighting between all hockey fans. The hatred thrown at sportswriters and fans and the cities are beyond me. It’s immature bs to say the least. The “one up” stuff trying to show who’s the better fan is so lame.
It’s a done deal.. there’s so much smoke it’s not even funny. And it’s a sad day for hockey here in Atlanta. It’s so easy for someone to say this is “not a good hockey town”… Well that’s bs as well. The number of leagues/teams for both adults and kids is/was growing daily. Yes, it’s not Canada for hockey growth.. neither is Pittsburgh or San Jose. But with 5 rinks that have strong travel hockey programs, the 2nd largest adult hockey league in the country, and a ton of former NHL players living and coaching here; it’s a pretty good market. And anyone who really knows the situation realizes it’s the ownership and management that failed this city.
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
10:07 am
Crime in Atlanta, Georgia is well above the national median and has been a major problem for the city since the middle 20th century. Despite this, crime in the city has been declining since the late 1990s. As of 2008, Atlanta had a population of 537,958, the highest in its history.[1] During the 1970s, like with many large cities within the United States, Atlanta’s population began to decline. By 1990, the population was 394,017, down almost 20% from its population in 1970, which was 496,973.[2] In addition, the city center and surrounding areas began to go through an urban decay, and crime spiked significantly throughout the 1980s. Along with many other major cities in the United States, Atlanta was hard hit by the crack epidemic of most of the 1980s to early 1990s. In 1994, Atlanta was ranked the most dangerous city in the country by the Morgan Quitno Press
who wants to move to the desert?
May 20th, 2011
10:07 am
You are 10 times more likely to die of dehydration and heatstroke in Arizona than in Atlanta….Oh, did I mention BOREDOM too?
ThrasherFan
May 20th, 2011
10:07 am
Dawg, if rumors are true, this deal was done months ago… they never intended to find an owner here.
Who cares
May 20th, 2011
10:07 am
I do not see what the big deal is hockey is not a sport it is a game like golf or baseball. I could see getting upset if a real sport like falcons or dawgs football was leaving but come on people its just hockey or ice dancing whatever you want to call it let the nucks have their sissy sport back so we can cover real sports here.
BLUELANDbeliever
May 20th, 2011
10:08 am
Piss off canadian trolls. you people disgust me. Yall complained and cried abt losing the jets ter u want to $hi@ on us about this? Goes to show what kind of morals you canadians were raised with
Yep
May 20th, 2011
10:09 am
I call for a mass Atlanta Thrasher Fan lock out!!! Stick’em is right!!! If the owners want to F*** us lets do it right back.
Kovy's Agent
May 20th, 2011
10:09 am
Guys, guys, guys! It’s not over yet! Don Waddell’s on the case……….oh, wait, ok, it’s over. I wonder what Donny Boy is going to be doing with all this free time on his hands? Maybe he can get his good buddy Phil Esposito to hire him as his Boy Friday while handling his XM Radio duties. Never heard Phil ever once say a disparaging comment about Don over all these years of epic failure. And I’ll always remember the draft (was it 2004?) when we traded down from 8th and didn’t pick Anzi Kopitar and instead picked Alex Burrett instead. I recall him uttering something to the affect that “we traded down, picked-up extra picks and still got our man.” What a massive tool!
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
10:10 am
Hey Puck,
You have helped to elevate the class of this board with your screen name.
Erf
May 20th, 2011
10:11 am
I think that at the rally, we need to go old school and straight up burn an effigy of the ASG
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
10:12 am
We can all sit here and compare the two places. What good does it do? I can’t imagine living in Winnipeg, but I am sure many of the them feel the same way about Atlanta. What is sad is those that have to move there for job that do not want to do so. We can stay in our beloved cities with or without a hockey team. The Thrashers have had little success here as far as hockey goes. Just for the players and their families, I hope they find it even if it is Winnipeg. I could care less about the jerk fans that have come on our boards. However, I am sure there are many quality people in Winnipeg, some of them whom have represented themselves so diplomatically on our message boards.
thrasherdawg
May 20th, 2011
10:13 am
Idea:
Since the NHL has a rule that there can be no “public ownership” I have an idea.
Establish a private fund….7000 season ticket holders invest $15,000 each to purchase the team ($105,000,000) these ticket holders purchase tickets for 80% of the games ( average ticket(s) per investor(s)thus equalling 3). This will insure 14,000 per game with only 4000 tickets plus to the public. Every game would be a sell-out.
Under this business model, if you do the math, the ROI (return on investment) is approx. 4 years.
This model is a NO BRAINER. It will work…the NHL needs to give us a year t make it happen.
How do we get the word out?
Puck Like A Porn Star
May 20th, 2011
10:14 am
My screen name doesn’t insult anyone’s hometown or country. Classless fans do.
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
10:15 am
Eileen.
Thanks for comments like “even if it is Winnipeg”. You are quite a diplomat yourself. Don’t you have another tattoo to get or a dogfight to bet on? Any NASCAR this coming weekend?
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
10:16 am
@ Puck Like A Porn Star ..Yea your name is pretty classy their buddy.
Atlanta Native
May 20th, 2011
10:17 am
GP52, Geez. Get a life. We don’t care about inner city crime rates or to not put it so politely put it Black on Black crime. As I sit in my kitchen in a beautiful northern suburb of Atlanta, I actually feel sorry for you. You should feel lucky you don’t have to live like some people in this world do. The stats you have found most likely reflect those people.
Puck Like A Porn Star
May 20th, 2011
10:18 am
So is your grammar, genius.
Bettman wants to make Thrashers' sale hurt for Spirit | Jeff Schultz
May 20th, 2011
10:18 am
[...] to Winnipeg remains a long shot. (The Toronto Globe and Mail has reported it’s a done deal, although all parties are denying it.) But it’s worth noting that all franchise purchases — and certainly relocations — [...]
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
10:18 am
“Guffman, you are getting the same team we had. They aren’t winners. Yet. Because they are such great guys, I wish them nothing but the best whatever happens. We do know however that there are ones who absolutely love our city and will be very sad to leave.”
Players don’t like to be uprooted. When players sign new contracts with their current team, they will often take a discount because they don’t want to start over with a new team.
From what I gather, the Thrashers do have a lot of decent young players. Hopefully, Winnipeg will generate sufficient revenue to encourage the owners to spend more to the cap to create a winning team for the years to come.
There is nothing more exciting than watching a playoff game in Winnipeg. The fans would yell/holler/cheer for the entire game. It was a madhouse. Assuming there is a team for the upcoming year, it will be very exciting. There will be a huge buzz in the arena, and I’m sure some of it will spin off on the players.
Will Atlanta be given another shot? Who knows? But if I was a fan of Atlanta, I would be out at that rally and doing the select-a-seat thing. Show your support for hockey in Atlanta tomorrow. If you go out quietly, that will send a horrible message for your future prospects.
For example, imagine 12,000 Atlanta fans ponying up for season tickets, and only 8,000 in Winnipeg committing next week? Back up your support with your money. Chances are, it will be refunded very shortly, but it worth the message that you will be sending.
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
10:21 am
John F. sorry to disappoint you. No tatoo and no Nascar for me. Even if it is in Winnipeg, means not in Atlanta. Just wishing the guys and their families success despite the fact that I wish it were here in Atlanta. Are you a little sensitive? There was no slight to your area. I have never been there so I would not feel right forming any kind of opinion. Maybe some of your fellow country folks should reserve their judgment as well. This whole thing is getting silly.
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
10:21 am
Why on Earth would YOU want to buy a failure of a franchise like the Thrashers? Are you tripping? It’s a case study in how to NOT run a professional sports franchise, but how to alienate the supporting fan base.
The only fool even interested in buying this fraud franchise is an idiot from Canada that has more money than brains.
Even Bettman, who bought the Phoenix franchise and extorted annual payoffs from the Glendale City Council, wouldn’t even think of buying the Thrashers. It’s a RUINED ENTERPRISE.
Let it go off and die a slow and cold death in the land of moose and squirrel……We deserve better!
Yep
May 20th, 2011
10:22 am
Guffman,
The Thrashers cannot move till next season as their request to move was not put in Jan1st. If they strike a deal you can expect the fans of ATL to mass lock out and attempt of supporting a team that will move.
radeksmom
May 20th, 2011
10:22 am
You got the point.
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
10:26 am
So you’re wanting to watch PLAYOFF hockey games in Winnipeg? Well, someone should tell you that you’re buying the WRONG TEAM, you know?
Freeways
May 20th, 2011
10:26 am
Atlanta Native – Have I been to Buckhead? yes. What does that have to do with anything?
I was there in 2002 – apparently crime was through the roof and measure were being put in place. I was even told by the concierge at the hotel, not to be out past 11pm.
How am I making a fool of myself?
Facts are facts – Atlanta at a pop’n of 5million can’t support an NHL team – even with all your corporate headquarters (Coke, Delta, etc) you have no support.
Yet, little old Winnipeg (pop’n of 0.8 mill – metro) is getting a team.
JC
May 20th, 2011
10:26 am
FACE IT, CHRIS..IT’S A DONE DEAL. THE THRASHERS WILL BE MOVING TO WINNEPEG AND ATLANTA WILL BECOME THE FIRST CITY EVER TO LOSE 2 DIFFERENT NHL FRANCHISES..PATHETIC! AND HEY WHILE YOU’RE AT IT, WHY NOT TAKE THE BRAVES, HAWKS AND FALCONS, WILL YA??! 3 MORE TEAMS WHO HAVE ZERO SHOT AT WINNING A CHAMPIONSHIP!!! ATLANTA, GA= WORST SPORTS CITY EVER!!!!!!
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
10:27 am
And how do you KNOW the Thrashers didn’t put in a request to move before Jan 1st? The deal was “done” months ago and Bettman was intimately involved in it.
It doesn’t even matter. Bettman is a corrupt individual with selective morals. One stroke of his pen and an “exception” is made…..Team moved for $60 Million payoff. That’s how it works…..
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
10:27 am
“The Thrashers cannot move till next season as their request to move was not put in Jan1st. If they strike a deal you can expect the fans of ATL to mass lock out and attempt of supporting a team that will move.”
If they don’t put in the request by January 1, then they will need unanimous consent from the NHL Board of Governers. From the G&M article, they were given unofficial consent by the BoG a few months ago.
TNSE would not be in these negotiations with ASG at this point in time if there was any uncertainty that the board of governers wouldn’t approve the sale.
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
10:27 am
Oh and John, I did not mean country in terms of rural, I meant your fellow citizens. Also, no dog fighting for me this weekend either. I am just a suburban Mom who loves going to hockey games with my kids.
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
10:31 am
“So you’re wanting to watch PLAYOFF hockey games in Winnipeg? Well, someone should tell you that you’re buying the WRONG TEAM, you know?”
I’d rather acquire a young up-and-coming team like the Thrashers than the Coyotes, to be honest. To be honest, I would take any team at this point.
If hockey would actually work in Atlanta financially, assuming you had competent owners, I hope you guys get a team back in the future. It’s just kinda sad that no one in Atlanta would step up to the plate.
At least you have ‘lil Jon “spreading awareness”. Like gee… thanks. The point being, if there was immense financial potential that could be realized in Atlanta, I’m surprised that no one locally would take advantage of that.
HillMan
May 20th, 2011
10:31 am
Guffman, couldn’t agree more. Just called my season ticket rep. and upped my order. I have been saying in these blogs for days, stop with words and planning events. Call friends, family and co-workers and get them to call the season ticket line today and tomorrow. We don’t need to be at 12000 by a certain date, but we do need to show a pulse. Show that there is interest and with a new owner and 3-4 months before the season starts we can pack the place.
Hockey Hauler
May 20th, 2011
10:34 am
Where do I apply to have my company haul the junk to Winnepeg? We’re done for…Bettman screwed Atlanta.
BUT HERE’S THE WORST CRIMINAL IN ATLANTA HISTORY — DON WADDELL!!!!
FORGET ALL OF THE AWFUL BRAVES TEAMS IN THE 70′S AND 80′S. FORGET ALL OF RANKIN SMITHS’ STUPID & CHEAP MOVES WITH THE FALCONS. FORGET THAT THE HAWKS COULD NOT SIGN DAVID THOMPSON AND MARVIN WEBSTER IN THE 70′S AND THAT THEY WERE AWFUL….FORGET THAT THE FLAMES HAD THE POTENTIAL TO STAY HERE IF THE OWNER HADN’T WANTED MONEY FOR OTHER PROJECTS…THE FLAMES WERE FOR REAL FROM THE FIRST TIME THEY EVER DROPPED THE PUCK!!!
FORGET EVERYTHING ELSE, EXCEPT: DON WADDELL IS THE WORST EGG SUC%!*# DOG IN THE HISTORY OF ATLANTA SPORTS. HE AND THE THOSE IDIOT ATLANTA STUPID GOOFS WERE HAVE RUINED A SPORT THAT MANY OF US LOVE. WADDELL COULDN’T GET HIS BUTT OUT OF A WET PAPER BACK IF HE HAD A KNIFE TO CUT HIMSELF OUT……..HE HAS BASICALLY FOUND A WAY TO GET HIMSELF OUT OF ATLANTA AND LEAVE HOCKEY FANS IN THE DUST!
IF DEAR OLD THRASH CAN HAVE ONE LAST RIDE ON THE ZAMBONIE — HE SHOULD RUN OVER WADDELL AND LEAVE HIM IN THE DUST.
DONNIE, ENJOY YOUR BONUS/FINDERS FEE FOR COMING THROUGH WITH NEW OWNERSHIP OF THE THRASH/JETS — YOU ARE THE BIGGEST JERK IN THE HISTORY OF ATLANTA SPORTS!!!
THE FIRST THING WINNIPEG WILL DO IS FIRE YOUR SORRY BUTT — THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE FIRST THING ASG DID — BUT WE KNOW HOW THAT TURNED OUT, RIGHT?
MY TRUCKS ARE AVAILABLE FOR HAULILNG HOCKEY GEAR…..THEY ARE ALSO AVAILABLE TO LOAD, HAUL, DELIVERY REAL STINKING OLD FASHIONED SOUTHERN CHICKEEN OR BULL “HOCKEY” AND DUMP TRUCK LOADS ON DONNIE WADS YARD IF SOMEONE WILL GIVE ME HIS ADDRESS!!!!!
BYE THRASHERS, I WILL TRULY MISS THIS TEAM!!
Atlanta Native
May 20th, 2011
10:34 am
Freeways, I guess we all need to get off the boards and secure ourselves in our homes and bomb shelters today. I brought up Buckhead because it has the glitz and glamour that has attracted several of the young Thrashers to live there. It really doesn’t matter. It is like arguing with idiots. If you haven’t picked up on why the team has not been supported in the years since we made our one playoff appearance, there is no use going over it again. Have fun at the arena. You all are a very sensitive bunch about your city. It makes you wonder why.
Dusty Rhodes - American Dream
May 20th, 2011
10:37 am
AS the great Dusty Rhodes used to say about Ric Flair, “An Egg Sucking Dog is an Egg Sucking Dog even if he isn’t in the hen house.”
Don Waddell, ASG, Garry Bettman — All of you can go suck an egg!
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
10:39 am
Why not just call up Mayor Kasim Reed and ask for a $25 Million per year subsidy? It worked in AZ.
Kovy's Agent
May 20th, 2011
10:44 am
Two home playoff games in 11 seasons. Two! And they lost both of those. Let’s see Winnipeg sit through that period of incompetence and see how willing they are to pony-up dollars to continue the beatings. Sit through game after game where your team is outshot by more than double. Where you get a 60 minute effort perhaps once a week, if you’re lucky. Where your team feels overwhelmed at times you only hope to not be embarrassed on the ice let alone think you can win. And now have that go on year, after year, after year with the same ownership group and more importantly the same dufus in charge of the on-ice product: Don Waddell. Tell me then how many would step-up and continue to pay their hard-earned dollars for that product? You may call it an interesting strategy Mr. Bettmann but to continue to underwrite that level of incompetence suggests either one has more money than sense, or some other masochistic tendencies.
Is this hockey or wrestling? Hard to tell down here in football country.
May 20th, 2011
10:44 am
Was that before or after Nature Boy Ric Flair took Dusty Rhode’s face and rubbed it into his crotch before ripping his eyeballs out and breaking his backbone?
G52PlM228
May 20th, 2011
10:51 am
Glendale has warm weather and crime is less than Atlanta.
Danny the Canadian
May 20th, 2011
10:53 am
The really sad thing here is what it does to the fans. I’m a Canadian from southern ontario. If I ever lost my beloved Maple Leafs I would be heart broken. Obviously the Thrashers do not have as huge of a following, however they do have several loyal and die hard fans. In my opinion Quebec and Winnipeg should have a team (so should Halifax and Hamilton). I loathe that it is at the expense of Atlanta or any other team. I can play the blame game but the fact is there are so many factors at play I will never know whats what. I hope that everyone somehow wins in this scenario. I think an AHL team could be a good fit for Atlanta if worst comes to worst.
I saw a stat someone wrote saying 1 in 35 people would have to attend a game in Winnipeg to make it viable. Whoever wrote that, you sure don’t know Canadians. If a team comes to Winnipeg it will be packed to the rafters.
Sidebar: If the thrashers move to Winnipeg, I hope they ditch the Winnipeg Jets name and go with the Winnipeg Rebels… A tribute to the forgotten Canadian almost civil war.
I hope for the best for our neighbours to the south! Cheers
Freeways
May 20th, 2011
10:56 am
Atlanta Native – you’re bang on. It’s all moot since the world is SUPPOSED to end tomorrow, right. (insert eye-roll here).
in all seriousness, I am sincerely sorry you’re losing your team – it stinks.
By the way, I live in Long Beach CA, so I have no direct loyalty (or “sensitivity”) either way. I’ve been to both cities (ATL and WPG) and have to say, Winnipeg is very underated. First time I went I was actually worried my nose would freeze off. Turns out, it’s awesome (great clubs, restaurants, and history) and the MTS Center is amazing.
I’m just tired of seeing all the whiners and complainers slamming Winnipeg when in all likelihood, 95% have never been.
Guffman
May 20th, 2011
10:57 am
Here’s an article I thought you guys would appreciate: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/globe-on-hockey/thrashers-failure-rests-with-owners-and-the-nhl/article2029445/
muser
May 20th, 2011
10:57 am
The poor Thrashers players have no idea how much they’ll hate Winnipeg. -30 in the winters. Mosqitos the size of golf balls in the 12 week summers. 50% income tax year round. Just like the last time, Winnipeg will have to pay a big premium to sign a free agent. They’ll stink again. The seats will be empty again. They’ll move again. I was there to see them leave last time. Thank God I won’t be there for the rerun. Impending disaster!
Cajun Crap Talker
May 20th, 2011
10:58 am
Why did these Jokers EVER buy this team (these teams) in the first place? They’ve never known what the he11 they’re doing. Who knows, may David McDavid would’ve led us to championships . . .
The bizarro commish
May 20th, 2011
11:02 am
Hi everyone,
Bizarro Commish here – clearly there is some misconception about Winnipeg. I have heard from nearly every player in the NHL that they LOVE playing in freezing weather in a town so small that fine dining is Tim Horton’s and hot chicks are fat ankled women. They love it!
In fact, I have a signed petition from every one of the NY Rangers BEGGING me to leave Manhattan and move the team to Kamloops!
Stay tuned….
Resigned
May 20th, 2011
11:06 am
Good Bye, Good Bye, Good Riddance!
Danny the Canadian
May 20th, 2011
11:06 am
Bizzaro…Kamloops is like heaven on earth. Did you just pick a town with a funny name?
St. Louis du Ha! Ha! would have been funnier. Real town…not kidding.
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
11:13 am
Thrashers holding a Select A Seat event tomorrow at Philips Arena? Is this a joke?
Is there no end to the shame & humiliation this ownership group pours onto the heads of ATLANTA Thrashers fans?
Eileen
May 20th, 2011
11:17 am
Guffman, thanks for providing us with that article. I keep going over Bradley’s article in my head as the best one yet in this fiasco. I am glad the Globe and Mail referred to it as well. As sad as it is, I hope that the hockey world knows what great fans there are and would have been in Atlanta if not for the ASG.
Kovy's Agent
May 20th, 2011
11:22 am
The more I think about it, I’m going to the select-a-seat tomorrow and buy a boatload of the best seats in the house because the way my luck works, the WPG deal will then fall through and I’ll be stuck with all those seats and have to figure out a way to pay for them! You can thank me on Wednesday when the big WPG announcement is suddenly canceled.
J E T S
May 20th, 2011
11:31 am
Eileen, you are making great sense. As a Winnipeger, please do not form opinions of us based on the few dead beats on here making ignorant comments regarding Atlanta and their fans. Yes we do believe we deserve a team but in no way like seeing another city lose their’s to make it happen. Lets be clear Winnipeg is not taking your team….the Thrashers were owned by a group who obviously did a terrible job and now they do not want them anymore. TNSE just happens to be a group looking to buy something that is clearly for sale. It’s unfortunate for fans like Eileen that won’t have hockey to take her kids too but let’s realize that we are not taking your team from you, we are simply buying something that was for sale. It’s sad that this has turned into insulting each others cities and fans when it seems the real enemy in Atlanta is ASG.
GatorFan
May 20th, 2011
11:42 am
Living in Birds Hill, I guess I’m going to have a pile of NHL players as neighbors soon. People are making jokes about 100 people at Portage and Main last night. Its not official yet. When the official announcement is made I’m sure there will be thousands there.
ThrasherFan
May 20th, 2011
11:52 am
Ponder this…
A Free Agent signs with Atlanta and therefore pays US tax. By being shipping to Canada they immediately jump at least 10% in tax owed. What kind of BS is that?
The bizarro commish
May 20th, 2011
11:59 am
My apologies – late reports indicate Kamloops is home to great weather and hot chicks. Rangers standing outside NHL office on Park Ave. DEMANDING we move them to Sudbury. After all, check out the coldest cities in Canada – who woudnt want to move to these great cities?
Todb
May 20th, 2011
12:00 pm
Let’s do the math 15000 tickets sold for an average price of $60=900,000 18000 tickets sold for an average of $30= 540,000 . Do the math Arena size does not mean everything Wpg will be a profitable team once the BOG see’s this look for more money losing franchise’s
To move
@Todb
May 20th, 2011
12:04 pm
Whatever the math – all you Winnipeg slaggers out there – the one objective reality is that no matter how much money Winnipeg does or doesn’t make – it will be MORE than the money made (lost) in the ‘much larger market’ of Atlanta. Not sure how anybody in Atlanta honestly thinks the team can survive there.
Todb
May 20th, 2011
12:06 pm
Sounds like a great place to live!
Thriving Culture in Atlanta
May 20th, 2011
12:06 pm
Atlanta is 5th in the US in child Poverty. It is one of 18 cities in the US to INCREASE its poverty rate in 2011. Poverty rate is 40%. Crime rate is near the top in the US. Child malnutrition and hunger ranks higher than some 3rd world countries and the literacy rate is well below the industrialized world. Despair and desperation hang over much of the city and sadly, with no hope of escape, many turn to drugs and suicide.
Crews in white panel vans go through the city at dawn every morning to clean up the bodies. Hopes for Federal funding fell through with the financial collapse. Whole tracts of homes in previously respectable neighborhoods have been abandoned due to foreclosure. Homes can’t sell because real estate prices continue to fall and multiple attempts by police to rid homes of squatters who use the homes as crack houses have failed. Many people have turned to prostitution, child porn and dog fighting just to put food on their family’s table. President Obama refused to declare Atlanta a disaster area because then he would have to send money. Obama has yet to visit this decrepit, burnt out shell of a city.
Add to that the school shootings, prison riots, bombing of the Olympics, serial killers, and mass suicides and you get an idea of ‘Atlanta Culture’. But it is warmer there. And they do have a basketball team. Three cheers for the thriving metropolis of Atlanta.
ThrasherFan
May 20th, 2011
12:10 pm
Todb – can’t remember the last time I paid 30 bucks for a ticket here in Atlanta. More like 60-100…
@Thrasherfan
May 20th, 2011
12:25 pm
Good one – scalpers must have loved you. I was at games in Phoenix and Atlanta and got lower bowls for FIVE BUCKS. Comp tickets all over the place.
The BettFather
May 20th, 2011
12:29 pm
Sorry, but Wpeg is only RENTING the Thrashers cause the numbers don’t work. Wpeg couldn’t even consistently sell out the old arena when the Jets played here. Just ask anyone who lives here! Now we’re talking 15,000 seats (sellout) when the Thrashers averaged 13,469 home attendance last year with a team that was consistently sh*tty by all measures and absurdly sh*tty at certain points of the season? This is like some kind of sad joke!
More important is the lack of luxury boxes to sell in Wpeg. That’s where the money is made or lost, not the turnstiles (a popular misconception). Bettman would sooner move the Thrashers to Antarctica than give Wpeg another “destined for future relocation” team. But he’s getting at least a $60 Million payoff that the league desperately needs because of his corrupt mismanagement of it. There is no other buyer for the Thrashers — ANYWHERE.
The $60 Mill + the only buyer available are the reasons the Thrashers are making a pit stop in Wpeg. Within 5 years they will relocate once again, probably to an American city, with fans demonstrating in the streets! Deja vu all over again.
Bob's your uncle
May 20th, 2011
12:35 pm
At the end of the day … money talks and BS walks. It doesn’t matter why Thrasher fans weren’t going to games … the simple fact of the matter is that they WEREN’T going to games in sufficient numbers to earn the team a profit. Leafs fans have reasons to complain too (some would say 40+ years worth of reasons), but they still go to games, pay through the nose to do so, and as a result, MLSE is a money maker. Anyone looking at things objectively without emotional attachment (that would be people other than you NHL, Thrasher and Coyotes fans, etc) would quickly come to the conclusion that a NHL team belongs in Winnipeg, Quebec City and Southern Ontario far MORE than Phoenix, Atlanta, Miami (among other NHL cities). Look at the facts
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
12:37 pm
BettFather – you used the key words “the only buyer available”. Meaning the other “buyers” are not available. Guys like the Balkan, Boots Del Biaggio, Bruce McNall. They’re not available. In all of North America, other buyers are not available because hockey is not viable in non-hockey markets. The only really genuine available buyers are in cities like Winnipeg. Stay tuned – Quebec City is next. Then Hamilton.
This really weird experiment of playing ice hockey where there is no ice is coming to an end.
Stan Drulia
May 20th, 2011
12:39 pm
Freeways — “95% of them have never even been there”. Exactly. Bush league town. Bush league culture. Bush league beer. Nice boobs pressed against the glass in Vancouver recently.. but overall bush league country.
Aetna
May 20th, 2011
12:40 pm
Hope you like your new AHL team next year.
Love,
Hartford, CT
Joe Friday
May 20th, 2011
12:42 pm
“THEY ARE ALSO AVAILABLE TO LOAD, HAUL, DELIVERY REAL STINKING OLD FASHIONED SOUTHERN CHICKEEN OR BULL “HOCKEY” AND DUMP TRUCK LOADS ON DONNIE WADS YARD IF SOMEONE WILL GIVE ME HIS ADDRESS!!!!!”
Oh, it’s coming. All of their addresses and phone #s are coming.
Todb
May 20th, 2011
12:49 pm
MTS center has 46 luxury suites plus 2 party suites(single game rent) rumor has a suite will be $150,000 and they are all spoken for. Average ticket price in most cities in the south are to low that is why they are losing money all the Canadian teams except Ottawa made a profit last year (Ottawa lost 1 million) look for more teams to be on the move now that tv contract is locked in
The Balkan
May 20th, 2011
12:55 pm
The ASG will hold a “Le Bron James” type TV special to announce they are taking their talents to Winnipeg.
Zombie Steve
May 20th, 2011
12:56 pm
The NHL Network just confirmed the deal. FU Waddell. FU asg. FU bettman. And FU Winnipeg
John Ferguson
May 20th, 2011
12:58 pm
You guys want proof that hockey is not viable in places like Atlanta or Glendale? Go to the home page of ajc right now. You will struggle to find a story about this – you can find it but you will have to drill down. This stuff is front page news in Winnipeg. Atlanta is in the process of losing this team and most people there DO NOT CARE. It is and was the same story in AZ – the Yotes are within an inch of leaving and it is hard to find anybody in Phoenix who cares. There was virtually nothing about it in the local papers. There was and will be way more in the news about this in Winnipeg and even Canadian cities not directly involved than there is in Atlanta. This story (Thrash moving) was a story on a national newscast in Canada last night. Why? Because we care. This is religion to us. You guys don’t and that is cool because it is not part of your culture. A few dozen of you will miss the team but for the most part, Atlanta will not care.
Winnipeg = Poverty
May 20th, 2011
1:06 pm
Bad news for Thrasher players being exiled to the very poor 3rd world city of Winnipeg. Get ready for less money boys with true North trying to cut costs in a city with very limited revenue streams and silly tax rates. I wonder how many players are on the phones with their agents like goalie Denis Lemieux in the the movie “Slapshot” “That’s right they closing, Trade me right F#@!IN Now!!!” and then they all hang up on their cell phones.
jw
May 20th, 2011
1:10 pm
so this atlanta spirit outfit – if they sell the Hawks, could they maybe afford to run the Thrashers? Bottom line for the Thrashers is this – make ticket prices affordable, put some talent out there that wants to be in the town and work on making the playoffs – we need a Pendleton (1991 Braves) who is willing to help get it going – at any cost. Got to put a winner on the ice before folks will visit the Blue Crew’s home – and that’s another post for another day.
Todb
May 20th, 2011
1:15 pm
How do you know what our tax rates are? They will love this city when they enter the loudest building in the league. Worse that can happen everybody is wrong team has to move we will be known as 2 time looser’s just like Atlanta
Joe Friday
May 20th, 2011
1:26 pm
“A few dozen of you will miss the team but for the most part, Atlanta will not care”
this is not true. huge misconception on the part of our Canadian friends. I’ve lived in this city for 22 years, and I’m from an Original 6 city. Everyone at the games is from Detroit, Philly, NY, Pitts. Chicago, Buffalo . . . we’re all hockey fans, it’s why we quit going, they weren’t playing hockey! If we had a real owner, we’d have sold it out every night like we did in the early years, and Waddell is the one he drove people away through his mismanagement of the club. This is biggest travesty I’ve ever seen . . .
Joe Friday
May 20th, 2011
1:32 pm
To our Canadian friends, at least be educated about what happened here.
Atlanta is a not a southern city except for geography. What I mean is that 100% of the increase in the population in this city over the past 20 years is all from transplanted northeners. We’re all hockey fans.
The big joke around here is at a meeting at church we always ask people “anyone originally from Atlanta” and one person out of 30 raises their hand . . . we’re all northeners, hockey is in our blood, we just didn’t have a GM (until this year) or owners that knew how to build a team. Tronna is the only town that will support a loser year after year . . .
The takeaway here is not that hockey couldn’t make it here, there’s millions of northeners who live here now, the takeaway here is that ownership and Don Waddell failed, not the fans.
Winnipeg = Poverty
May 20th, 2011
1:49 pm
@Todb If I want to find what the tax rates are Winnipeg all I have to do is find it on a little thing called the internet which you happen to be using right now. A new Winnipeg franchise will have to move you can count on it, so don’t get too loyal to them.
Yep
May 20th, 2011
1:56 pm
How can two season of 13k average give reason to move a team? This is BS and the league could care less. I hope the NHL along with Canada go under water.
Kal
May 20th, 2011
2:05 pm
As much as everyone wants to blame Atlanta Spirit, there is another body that gets blame in this fiasco.
The suits at Time-Warner who had a deal with David McDavid for the two teams and Phillips Arena. They changed their minds at the least minute and showed their business acumen by having to pay $318 million to McDavid to settle a lawsuit.
WHy doesn’t ASG give Dave a call?
NHL collapse
May 20th, 2011
2:13 pm
The NHL is on the verge of a financial melt down. A team is moving from a city of 6M to a city of 700K just so the league can collect a relocation fee of $60M. I dont care how “niche” the sport was in Atlanta if the team cant make it there it has no shot in Winnipeg.
Consider that the ECHL Gwinnett Gladiators play in a COUNTY here that has 100K more people than ALL OF WINNIPEG.
HA!
There are at least 10 NHL teams on the verge of bankruptcy. There are zero ownership groups interested in buying an NHL team in an American market. The only viable North American market left is Toronto where people want a 2nd team because their current team sucks ass. Good luck NHL! We will see you again on the TV ratings list–just behind bull riding and female roller derby….but ahead of midget wrestling!
Todb
May 20th, 2011
2:16 pm
Dude I can assure you we do not pay 50 percent in income tax!
Attendance a Joke
May 20th, 2011
2:37 pm
Judging the popularity or success/failure of the Thrashers by attendance is a joke. After all, there were 12,000 people at the Blue Jays game last night according to the box score. Of course, TV doesnt lie and there could not have been more than 6,000 people at the game – AT MOST. Toronto is a city of 6M+ people – is baseball just as “niche” and unpopular as hockey in Atlanta? The Blue Jays have not drawn flies in years with what have been .500 teams. Should the Jays be moved?
The BettFather
May 20th, 2011
2:39 pm
Apparently Philips Arena has 96 luxury suites (approx twice as many as MTS Centre) and 2,893 club seats. MTS Centre would also be the smallest home arena in the NHL with capacity of 15,015. This past Sept an exhibition game between the Stanley Cup Champs Chicago Blackhawks & TB Lightning didn’t even sell out at MTS Centre.
So Todb, how are these numbers going to work again?
The BettFather
May 20th, 2011
2:42 pm
Dude, 41+% is pretty darn close to 50%:
The average Canadian family spent more than 41 per cent of its annual income on taxes in 2010, more than it paid for food, clothing, and shelter combined, concludes a new study released today by the Fraser Institute, Canada’s leading public policy think-tank.
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
2:48 pm
Bettman takes a multi-million dollar payoff from the BUYER…..Extorts even more money from the SELLER…..Extorts even more money from the Glendale City Council…..All for what?
For trying to correct two huge mistakes by committing another huger mistake! Letting the OctoCluster own the Thrashers franchise was the first mistake and buying the Phoenix Fiasco was the second one. Now he’s sending the Thrashers off as sacrificial lambs to the coldest place on the entire planet Earth with the smallest market in the league and the smallest arena in the league….Not to mention you have to physically chain your car’s frame to the nearest streetlight in order for it to still be there when you return!
Can anyone say T-R-A-I-N-W-R-E-C-K waiting to happen?
@Thrasherfan
May 20th, 2011
3:00 pm
who cares? Even if I agreed with you that the Jets will lose money, who really gives a damn? Its their money and they’re willing to lose it ( but we won’t ). Phoenix has their Mayor Scruggs handing over good money after bad and now we have the wealthiest owner of any team in ANY sport willing to do the same in Winnipeg.
The fact that you clowns can’t see that times have changed – Cdn dollar worth more than USD – SALARY CAP – and the new Jets owner OWNS THE BUILDING. Those 3 factors alone add up to much more profit for this owner than the previous owner. Had the one fact ALONE that the previous Jets owner didn’t own the building been different, the jets likely never would have moved.
And now you have Spirit selling the arena and the Hawks and the new owners do not want the hockey team – so even if you did find an owner to keep the team in Atlanta they would have to RENT THE BUILDING THAT IS ALREADY LOSING MONEY!!! So they would be paying rent AND not make any money from concessions. THRASHERS ARE GONE GET OVER IT
Winnipeg = Poverty
May 20th, 2011
3:05 pm
@ The BettFather Everybody knows MTS Centre and the tiny hamlet of Winnipeg just isn’t going to work. Is the NHL this desperate? What does that tell the rest of the owners about Bettman to let a deal go through to a place that hasn’t been able and will never be able to support a team. Gary you expanded the NHL much too fast and now you’re trading one headache for another. A town of 730,000 with an arena of only 15,015 just won’t work in league with payrolls of $57 million.
Atlanta Ghetto Slum
May 20th, 2011
3:10 pm
Bettman works for the owners you tool. The owners made the decision. All your BS is great cuz then its really going to sting when season tickets for the ENTIRE STADIUM SELL OUT IN UNDER A WEEK.
And not, you’re only allowed to buy season tickets if you sign up for THREE YEARS.
So lets talk after the 2013/14 season and see where we’re at. In the meantime, losing money or not, we have hockey and you have dog figthing. Enjoy it.
Winnipeg = Poverty
May 20th, 2011
3:30 pm
@ Atlanta Ghetto Slum Wow! I feel so humbled by the Winnipegger who got an education in one of Winnipeg’s one-room schoolhouses. Here’s some questions for you. When is the farm tractor parade down Portage and Main? Will the city of Winnipeg make good on its promise for a free chicken to each Thrasher player that will be willing to play there? Will Thrasher wives and girlfriends still get free horse and buggy rides to the MTS Centre for games?
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
3:47 pm
LOL….Look at all the trash-talking Northerners getting all bent out of shape….That’s simply not good form you know, eh?
You couldn’t sell out MTS when the STANLEY CUP CHAMPS came to play there…LOL And you have the balls to get on an ATLANTA sports blog and rag on ATLANTA fans for their “failure” to support hockey????
Can’t even sell 15,000 lousy once-in-a-season NHL tickets to see the Cup Champions play there and you think you’re going to SELL OUT 15,000 SEASON TICKETS IN UNDER A WEEK? Oh…This is rich stuff guys! LOL
OOPS….Laughing so hard I think I just felt a little pee come out…LOL
You’re not going to be paying for a chance to see the Stanley Cup Champs play every night. You DO understand that right? Your Moose games are probably more competitive than some nights when the Thrashers decide to go out and take the ice….Believe me…Some nights it’s a toss-up for them in the locker room whether they do come out and play or not, and that’s to play in front of an avg of 13,500 per night!
After they lose 15 of their first 20 home games at MTS, you’ll be able to hear a grasshopper fart in that arena. You won’t have to worry about a capacity of “only” 15,000!
Can’t sell out to see the Stanley Cup Champs play but you’re going to sell 15,000 season tickets in less than a week to see the Thrashers play! Oh man….Haven’t heard anything so funny from the Great White North since Bob & Doug McKenzie held a beer fart smelling contest — and they BOTH won! LOL Get it? They’re Canadian……LOL
Winnipeg = fat ankled women
May 20th, 2011
3:56 pm
Lets see how the arena in Winnipeg looks after the team misses the playoffs for the next decade. Although I admit that on a -10 degree night the only competition for entertainment is making a snowman, the simple fact of the matter is that unless the people in the ‘Peg are even more stupid than I thought they too will not support a perennial loser – they will likely just go to a bar, drink some Molson, and watch the Habs.
Anti-G52
May 20th, 2011
4:05 pm
This is becoming just like the Phoenix forums. 100 straight posts as to why Winnipeg shouldn’t have the Thrashers and not 1 post as to why Atlanta should keep them.
Balkin
May 20th, 2011
4:13 pm
Chill-lax everyone. I’m on the phone right now with ASG looking to make a deal for the arena, the basketball team, and ….. what was that other thing they were going to throw in? Oh yeah! That funny sport played on ice.
I got it covered.
NHL Business Model
May 20th, 2011
4:14 pm
The reason why the NHL should stay in Atlanta is simple:
By the NHL leaving a market of 6M to a market of 700K, the value of every franchise just went down. Owners buy teams to make money and the value of the NHL, as a league, is lower when the #8 US TV market leaves and is replaced by a tiny city in Canada. Furthermore, the NHL is on the verge of having 6-8 teams, all in the South and many in large markets such as South Florida, Dallas, and Phoenix that will also either collapse, fall into bankruptcy, or need to move. Unfortunately, there is nowhere to move.
So the bottom line is simple: the same reason for moving into the South is the same reason that leaving is bad for the NHL.
Note the local TV ratings for this season….
http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?t=819013
Chris M.
May 20th, 2011
4:20 pm
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=366374
The prospect of potentially seeing the franchise move from Atlanta to Winnipeg has him divided. On one hand, Mason feels bad about the fans and team employees that would be left behind in Atlanta but it would also give him a chance to live out a dream.
“There’s definitely things that would be really cool about it,” said Mason. “Playing in Canada, for me, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do. It would be really cool.
“Just playing in front of a packed house every night would be awesome.”
We should have invaded in the 1800s....
May 20th, 2011
4:48 pm
Despite being a hockey fan, I’m at the point where I almost want the move to Winnipeg to fall through just so I can go on blogs and taunt all the “Winnipeggers” who troll around here. Lame.
is it cold in Canada? Should I wear a jacket?
May 20th, 2011
5:03 pm
Why should there be ANY posts as to why the Thrashers should stay in Atlanta when the fix is in? I mean, we’re not STUPID you know? We realize we’ve been had. We know the deal was done months ago even though we’re still being lied to every hour on the hour by league officials. The ownership doesn’t want the Thrashers and hasn’t wanted them for at least the past 6 years that they’ve had them on the market. They’ve so run the franchise into the ground that there’s only ONE potential buyer in the entire world that even wants it….And it wasn’t even that buyer’s first choice!
Soon it will be Winnipeggers unable to post a single reason to keep this cursed franchise in their town. Sooner than you think……That day is coming.
Hockey comes home
May 20th, 2011
5:32 pm
For all those Atlantans slagging Winnipeg, at least the Winnipeg Jets/Thrashers won’t be relegated to the back page of the Sports section behind road races, golf, high school football and assorted other Podunk sports. Hockey is coming home where it belongs. Now you have more nights available for tractor pulls at the arena.
Kirk
May 20th, 2011
5:35 pm
In this city for many years, when the product was bad, people would not spend their money. The Braves were a bad product until 1991, when Ted Turner let John Scherholtz run the team. The product improved and people started coming out to games. The Hawks were a bad product and was near relocation until Turner bought the team. The attendence improved once the product was better. The Falcons are the great point: Poor ownership, people would not buy tickets. Arthur Blank buys the team, the product improves, and now the Georgia Dome is sold out every game. Mr. Bettman wants people to spend their money on a neglected product, then says you are damaging the franchise when you do not. Of course Mr. Bettman would never say that the Atlanta Idiots, er, Spirit was the reason the franchis lost value. Bottom line, if we had a properly ran hockey team, there would be no reason to sell this fanchise. Sadly, Mr. Bettman is as ignorant as the Atlanta Idiots, er, Spirit.
Uh....
May 20th, 2011
5:55 pm
some guy from Winnipeg is trash talking about us having tractor pulls? My guess is there are more tractors in Manitoba than there are people.
Eugene
May 20th, 2011
6:26 pm
If the Thrashers move to Winnipeg, it probably will mean Nashville will be moved to the Eastern Conference and Winnipeg will be moved to the Western Conference. Winnipeg will not make the playoffs for at least 5 years if they’re in the Western Conference, we’ll see if the fan support is really there after 10 straight losing seasons.
Hockey comes home
May 20th, 2011
7:15 pm
I’m not from Winnipeg, I am from Toronto. I am just saying that a city that could care less about hockey does not deserve a team. I for one will do my best to buy tickets to the first Winnipeg Thrashers game at the ACC. By the way, hockey tickets aren’t cheaper than tickets to a movie when you live in Canada, we pay up to $400 a seat, and that is in real, Canadian money, not US funny money.
Oh really?
May 20th, 2011
7:38 pm
So, Hockey comes home, you’re not from Winnipeg but you’re spending time trash talking on Atlanta newspaper blogs? I figured there were things to do in Toronto, but I guess not.
If Winnipeg deserves a team so much, why did the Jets decide they couldn’t make money staying there? Because the arena was bad? Well, if it was sold out every night (which is what everyone in Winnipeg claims will happen with the Thrashers), the Jets would have been viable and stayed there.
By your logic, since the Blue Jays don’t draw fans like comparable Major League Baseball teams in the U.S., your city doesn’t deserve them (or the Raptors for that matter). Since Charlotte wants a baseball team, and Seattle wants to get the NBA back, I presume you agree that the Blue Jays and Raptors should pull up stakes and move, correct?
OHL
May 20th, 2011
7:50 pm
If the Raptors left to a US city that was significantly smaller than Toronto’s 4.8 million but had a large urban population that would pay to see NBA, I wouldn’t be saying things like we have 4.8 million people and you don’t. I would understand that it would get far more support if it went to a city that produced NBA basketball players and lots of people played the sport, even though that city is smaller than Toronto. I understand that it makes far more sense for the Grizzlies to be in Memphis than Vancouver.
Eugene, Detroit has already put in a request to move to the Eastern Conference. They complain about it every year and I think they would get it before Nashville, although we can argue all day about what makes more sense. It was already stated that the BoG won’t have time to consider it which is another indicator that this deal is done.
So OHL....
May 20th, 2011
8:34 pm
what about the Blue Jays? Should they move too, or are they not for an “urban population”?
OHL
May 20th, 2011
8:40 pm
Well to get down to it, neither the Blue Jays or the Raptors have the low attendance figures that the Thrashers have. So in that sense, neither of them should move. The Raptors actually do quite well in some years despite not being a playoff contender but I don’t think the Grizzlies did so good.
I don’t see the Blue Jays attendance being as bad as the Thrashers even though they get beat over the head by the Yankees, Red Sox and now even the Rays.
Hockey comes home
May 20th, 2011
9:16 pm
I fully agree with OHL. This is ultimately about dollars and if the Jays and Raptors were in financial trouble and decided to move to Omaha then so be it. My point is that just because Atlanta has a large population, it doesnt mean that it has a right to retain a team in a sport that it doesnt give a rat’s behind about. Pro sports teams should be situated where the locals are rabid fans, not where the sport is treated as a curiousity. Personally, if the NHL deciced to pull out of anything south of the 40th parallel and put another ten teams in Canada (and back in Hartford) then I would fully support that. I would hate to see the demise of Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, New York Rangers, the Wild/Stars, and Philly but I could care less about the Panthers, Yotes, etc….
Give it a break
May 20th, 2011
9:49 pm
Not sure what the Canadians on this blog want, like Atlanta hockey fans are going to applaud their team moving anywhere else. Of course we want them to stay. And no, your protestations about how the people of Manitoba will pack the arena to the gills in perpetuity even if the team goes through a decade of futility like it has here holds no water. If that was the case, and would ensure the financial viability of an NHL franchise in Winnipeg, the Jets would still be there. The Jets left for the same reason the Thrashers will probably leave here – the NHL doesn’t work as a business in the metro area.
As for the trash talking, the only explanation I can find for people getting some sort of satisfaction by taunting disappointed fans in another city is that it’s a bunch of Canadians yet again manifesting their national inferiority complex. Yes, it’s true that the history of the world would be absolutely no different if Canada was part of the United States (as Canadian Paul Shaffer said himself on David Letterman one time), and that other than British Columbia, there’s not a place up there that anyone would live if they had a choice. The obvious issues that causes the Canadians to exhibit on this blog are unfortunate, but you really ought to find another, more productive way to deal with them than coming on here taunting hockey fans in another city.
Hockey in Atlanta
May 21st, 2011
12:16 am
I will be tickled to death when most, or maybe none, of the current Thrashers players want to relocate to Winnipeg assuming the sale and move of the team goes through. Then what ?
Hockey in Atlanta
May 21st, 2011
12:35 am
Tweets by AJC hockey writer Chris Vivlamore:
Sorry folks, talks between #Thrashers and TSNE continue but no deal is complete. 10 hours ago
AJC is told talks continue on sale of #Thrashers, but no deal is complete. 10 hours ago
Fans still planning to attend Thrashers’ select-a-seat event http://bit.ly/jWnUhZ 10 hours ago
New #Thrashers blog posted. Fans still plan to attend select-a-seat event. http://bit.ly/kp8WD6 10 hours ago
I’ve been told the #Thrashers are still selling season tickets – with at least one being sold Friday.
Harry in Roswell
May 21st, 2011
10:15 am
LOL “Give it a break” at @9:49 last night. You are right about the inferiority complex. I lived in Ontario for two years for work, and every Canadian I got to know had exactly that.
One thing no one rooting for Winnipeg on this blog has explained is why the Jets left if Winnipeg is the world’s greatest place for hockey. If the arena – whatever it was at the time – was packed every night, then why did the Jets go to Arizona?
Flames Fan
May 21st, 2011
7:30 pm
When I think back on the Atlanta Flames (30+ years after they left town), names like Eric Vail, Willie Plett, Guy Chouinard, Curt Bennett, Tom Lysiak, Boom Boom Gef, Jiggs McDonald come to mind. I could name a bunch more (Tim Echolstone, Bill Clement, Dan Bouchard…).
Should I think back on the Thrashers many years from now, I will think of Illya Kovalchuck, Danny Heatly…Damien Rhodes….Don Waddell….Atlanta Spirit.
Losing the Flames was a tradgedy. Losing the Thrashers is more like a mercy killing. The franchise has been souless from the start. My best memory is the playoff games against the Rangers in 2007 and Opening Night against the Devils in 1999. Other than that, nothing much stands out. I had season tickets for the first three seasons, and I tried to get to as many games as possible in recent years…but never, ever did this franchise tap any of the residual spirit of the Flames.
Please, get it over with ASAP.